Page 43 - Cyber Defense eMagazine August 2023

computing landscape, ensuring their security becomes paramount. So, in this article, we will delve into
the key aspects of container security, exploring the risks and challenges involved and presenting best
practices to mitigate vulnerabilities.

Understanding Container Security

Containers provide isolated and lightweight environments for running applications, but they can introduce
security risks if not properly managed. One primary concern is the potential for a compromised container
to spread malware or gain unauthorized access to sensitive data. Moreover, container orchestration
systems, like Kubernetes, introduce additional complexities, making it crucial to adopt a multi-layered
security approach.

Basically, container security refers to the practice of implementing measures to protect containerized
applications and the underlying infrastructure from potential threats. Containers provide isolation for
applications, but if not adequately secured, they can become vulnerable entry points for cyberattacks. By
exploiting weaknesses in container configurations or utilizing compromised container images, malicious
actors can gain unauthorized access, compromise data, or execute malicious code.

Let us understand one of the aspects here, which is how to integrate the security testing and automate
the deployment of the container security model. Such systems must be deployed carefully and according
to established SOPs, which is a chaotic task. Once the construction is complete, it is necessary to
manage them in accordance with industry standards, such as those published by the National Institute
of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Center for Internet Security (CIS).

Understanding how to automate policies to indicate builds with security flaws, especially as new
vulnerabilities are discovered, which is the trick in this situation. Vulnerability scanning is still crucial, but
it is only one of many security measures used to safeguard your container settings.

Security testing should incorporate strategies that prompt automated rebuilds because patching
containers is never as effective of a fix as rebuilding them. The initial element of this process is using
component analysis tools that can track and flag problems. The establishment of tooling for automated,
policy-based deployment is the second step.

The following inquiries must be answered when integrating security testing and automated deployment:

• Do any containers have known flaws that need to be corrected before they can be used in a real-
world setting?
• Are the deployments set up properly? Exist any containers with excessive privilege that don't
require the increased privilege? Do we have a root file system that is read-only?
• What is the CIS Benchmarks compliance posture?
• Are any workloads deemed sensitive being isolated using default features like network policies
and namespaces?
• Are we making use of SELinux, AppArmor, and seccomp profiles, among other built-in security
and hardening tools?

Cyber Defense eMagazine – August 2023 Edition 43
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