Secure Your Containers

Maintaining the integrity of cloud containers is critical

  • By Ambuj Kumar
  • Mar 01, 2020

Development and deployment of container-based software has become a popular movement in technology. Docker, and container technology in general, is redefining cloud computing and offers significant benefits to developers and companies, including efficiency, cost savings, consistency, reliability and scalability for the entire DevOps processes. However, for enterprises running sensitive applications at scale using Docker, securing and maintaining the integrity of cloud containers is a critical aspect of DevOps.

A new approach proving effective is to run the cloud containers in a trusted environment, also known as a secure enclave, protected by hardware such as Intel SGX or AMD SEV. The secure enclave technology removes the risk associated with trusting the infrastructure or a user. Even if the infrastructure is comprised or the root user is hacked, the application remains secure.

Here is an illustration to better understand why this is important. An employee, Bill has decided to roll out a hotel reservation website using Kubernetes to scale and handle peak loads. Since the website will also collect guests’ personal information, security is a prime concern for Bill. Bill reaches out to Lori, the CISO, with a plan for security that includes database encryption and TLS.

Lori offers the tough question: “What about data in use?” She knows that even if data is carefully safeguarded while at rest and when exchanged over secure channels such TLS, data gets decrypted for use in memory, making software containers a good attack target for hackers in the cloud.

Bill does his homework and decides that running securitycritical services in Intel SGX secure enclaves is the only way to satisfy Lori’s security requirements. However, this also introduces various challenges to system administrators and developers:

  • Since running in Intel SGX involves making OCALLS (a new set of hardware instructions), instead of standard system calls, the applications need to be heavily refactored. This is almost impossible if applications are written in popular programming languages such as Java or Python.
  • Simply running an application (or its sensitive parts) within an enclave is not entirely sufficient. To fully utilize the security guarantees of Intel SGX, the user must also verify the integrity of the application, including whether it is running unmodified inside a secure enclave. Intel provides a way for users to achieve this using remote attestation. The remote attestation flow is complex, depends on the external Intel Attestation Service (IAS), and requires modifications to the application setup.
  • When running applications at scale, it becomes difficult to track the attestation status of every instance and apply software patches.

The security guarantees delivered by Intel SGX secure enclaves are promising, but by themselves introduce a level of cost and complexity. A new technology called runtime encryption is proving to be a successful approach to addressing these challenges, runtime encryption platform, which when combined with Intel SGX secure enclaves enables containers to be securely executed inside Intel SGX secure enclaves without the cost and complexity of using Intel SGX alone.

Runtime encryption’s approach is to decrypt and analyze data only when it is within a secure enclave protected by hardware technologies such as Intel SGX or AMD SEV. This new technology enables software to safely run in a secure enclave, creates keys to decrypt data, runs the analysis, and encrypts the result.

Other than runtime encryption, there are practically no solutions available which let organizations run containers in the cloud securely, while adhering to regulations and privacy. Runtime encryption can help organizations meet compliance requirements for regulations such as GDPR, California Consumer Privacy Act, and other similar regulations.

Runtime encryption also provides fine-grained access controls for the datasets in use in containers. With this new approach, the aggregate data is never exposed outside the secure enclave. Private analytics with runtime encryption are an easy to use, efficient, and offer a scalable approach which is critical for deploying containers.

Also, with runtime encryption, organizations can monitor the lifecycle of secure enclaves that run the container applications. Runtime encryption provides features such remote attestation, geolocation enforcement, DRM and secret injections. The platform seamlessly integrates with existing container orchestration technologies, including Kubernetes, Docker Swarm and OpenShift.

Containerization offers significant advantages to organizations, but only if they can keep their cloud data safe. Secure enclaves now combined with runtime encryption technology offer an effective, easy-to-use and low-cost solution to what was previously an unaddressed issue of migrating to the cloud.

This article originally appeared in the March 2020 issue of Security Today.

Featured

  • It's Show Time

    I am one of those people that likes to see things get bigger and better. As advertised, ISC West is going to be bigger (more exhibitors) and better (more attendees). It’s show time in Las Vegas. Read Now

    • Industry Events
    • ISC West

  • SIA Releases New Report on Operational Security Technology

    The Security Industry Association (SIA) has released an impactful new resource – Operational Security Technology: Principles, Challenges and Achieving Mission-Critical Outcomes Leveraging OST. Read Now

  • Cyber Overconfidence Is Leaving Your Organization Vulnerable

    The increased sophistication of cyber threats pumped by the relentless use of AI and machine learning brings forth record-breaking statistics. Cyberattacks grew 44% YoY in 2024, with a weekly average of 1,673 cyberattacks per organization. While organizations up their security game to help thwart these attacks, a critical question remains: Can employees identify a threat when they come across one? A Confidence Gap survey reveals that 86% of employees feel confident in their ability to identify phishing attempts. But things are not as rosy as they appear; the more significant part of the report finds this confidence misplaced. Read Now

  • Mission 500 Debuts Refreshed Identity Ahead of Security 5K/2K at ISC West

    Mission 500, the security industry’s nonprofit charity dedicated to supporting children in need across the US, Canada, and Puerto Rico, has unveiled a refreshed brand identity ahead of ISC West. The charity’s new look includes a modernized logo with refined messaging to reinforce Mission 500’s nearly decade-long commitment to serving the needs of children and families in crisis. Read Now

    • Industry Events
Most   Popular

New Products

  • Camden CV-7600 High Security Card Readers

    Camden CV-7600 High Security Card Readers

    Camden Door Controls has relaunched its CV-7600 card readers in response to growing market demand for a more secure alternative to standard proximity credentials that can be easily cloned. CV-7600 readers support MIFARE DESFire EV1 & EV2 encryption technology credentials, making them virtually clone-proof and highly secure.

  • ResponderLink

    ResponderLink

    Shooter Detection Systems (SDS), an Alarm.com company and a global leader in gunshot detection solutions, has introduced ResponderLink, a groundbreaking new 911 notification service for gunshot events. ResponderLink completes the circle from detection to 911 notification to first responder awareness, giving law enforcement enhanced situational intelligence they urgently need to save lives. Integrating SDS’s proven gunshot detection system with Noonlight’s SendPolice platform, ResponderLink is the first solution to automatically deliver real-time gunshot detection data to 911 call centers and first responders. When shots are detected, the 911 dispatching center, also known as the Public Safety Answering Point or PSAP, is contacted based on the gunfire location, enabling faster initiation of life-saving emergency protocols.

  • PE80 Series

    PE80 Series by SARGENT / ED4000/PED5000 Series by Corbin Russwin

    ASSA ABLOY, a global leader in access solutions, has announced the launch of two next generation exit devices from long-standing leaders in the premium exit device market: the PE80 Series by SARGENT and the PED4000/PED5000 Series by Corbin Russwin. These new exit devices boast industry-first features that are specifically designed to provide enhanced safety, security and convenience, setting new standards for exit solutions. The SARGENT PE80 and Corbin Russwin PED4000/PED5000 Series exit devices are engineered to meet the ever-evolving needs of modern buildings. Featuring the high strength, security and durability that ASSA ABLOY is known for, the new exit devices deliver several innovative, industry-first features in addition to elegant design finishes for every opening.