AWS Inspector

AWS Inspector

AWS Inspector is an automated security assessment service that helps you evaluate the security of your AWS workloads. It does this by identifying vulnerabilities in your EC2 instances and container images stored in Amazon ECR. Essentially, it’s a tool that helps find weaknesses in your AWS setup that could be exploited by attackers. It’s important to remember that you need to enable specific assessment templates in order to get results - the service won’t automatically scan everything by default.

What AWS Inspector does:

• Identifies vulnerabilities: It scans your systems for common security weaknesses, such as outdated software, misconfigured settings, or known vulnerabilities in applications.
• Checks network accessibility: It assesses whether your EC2 instances are unintentionally exposed to the internet, which could make them easier to attack.
• Helps achieve compliance: It checks your resources against established security standards, like the CIS benchmarks, making it easier to meet compliance requirements.
• Provides actionable findings: When issues are discovered, AWS Inspector provides clear reports with prioritized findings and recommendations on how to fix them.

How it Works

• You select the resources you want to assess: You define the scope of the assessment, specifying which EC2 instances or container images you want to include.
• Inspector analyses the configuration and software: It examines the settings and applications running on your chosen resources to identify potential vulnerabilities.
• It scans for network accessibility: It checks how your EC2 instances are connected to the network and whether they’re accessible from the internet.
• It generates a detailed report: You get a report outlining all the findings, their severity levels, and recommended remediation steps.

Key Benefits

• Proactive Security: It helps you find and fix security vulnerabilities before they can be exploited by attackers.
• Simplified Compliance: It makes it easier to meet security standards and comply with regulations.
• Automation: It automatically scans your systems, saving you time and effort.
• Integration: It seamlessly integrates with other AWS services, like Amazon ECR and AWS Security Hub, providing a comprehensive view of your security posture.

Use Cases

The sources provide examples of how Uber and Volkswagen Financial Services could use AWS Inspector: Uber:

• Automated Security Assessments: Continuously assess security and look for vulnerabilities.
• Compliance: Helps ensure the company follows relevant regulations.
• Threat Detection: Helps find misconfigurations that could allow attacks. Volkswagen Financial Services:
• Vulnerability Management: Supports patching programs and finds vulnerabilities that could lead to unauthorized AWS access.
• Easy Deployment: Used CloudFormation to set up scanning across EC2 and ECR.
• Centralized Management: Integration with AWS Organizations helped automatically onboard over 1300 accounts.
• Fast Remediation: Quick notifications of vulnerabilities and a consolidated list of findings make it faster to fix issues.

Important Points to Remember

• Shared Responsibility: Understand that while AWS manages the security of the underlying infrastructure, you’re responsible for securing your applications and data running on AWS, and AWS Inspector is a tool to help you with your part of the responsibility.
• Network Reachability: AWS Inspector can assess whether your EC2 instances are accessible from the internet, helping you close potential security holes.
• Prioritized Findings: The service provides easy-to-understand reports with prioritized findings, making it easier to focus on the most critical issues first.
• Integration: AWS Inspector works seamlessly with other AWS security services, like Amazon ECR and AWS Security Hub, offering a more comprehensive security approach. Remember, securing your AWS environment is a continuous process. Regularly using AWS Inspector and acting on its recommendations can significantly improve your overall security posture.