SecOps for Cloud

Challenges with detection and response in the cloud

Cloud introduces unique challenges that require teams to rethink traditional security tools and workflows. While tools like Cloud Workload Protection (CWP) and Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) provide critical capabilities, they are not sufficient on their own to address the complexities of cloud environments. 

Why CWP/EDR are not sufficient 

While CWP and EDR excel in runtime threat detection, they lack the broader context required for effective cloud security. Their runtime-centric view cannot detect threats across multiple layers of the cloud stack or provide the necessary insights for sophisticated cloud attacks. As standalone solutions, they rely heavily on manual processes with SIEM platforms to reconstruct attack stories and make detections actionable. 

  • Example: Common cloud attacks like privilege escalation are often missed because tools fail to correlate permissions misconfigurations with runtime behaviors, leaving critical threats undetected.  

Scalability issues 

Managing security in large-scale, multi-cloud environments poses significant scalability challenges. 

  • Data Correlation: Tools may struggle to correlate data across diverse cloud platforms, leading to blind spots in detection. 

  • Workload Diversity: Modern cloud environments include virtual machines (VMs), containers, serverless containers, and serverless functions, each with different operating systems and configurations. Ensuring comprehensive coverage across this diversity can overwhelm traditional tools.  

Cross-team dependencies 

Effective CDR requires seamless collaboration between SecOps, CloudSec, and development teams. However, dependencies between these teams often create bottlenecks: 

  • Context and Configuration Updates: SOCs rely on DevOps and cloud teams to provide critical context and ensure security configurations are up-to-date. 

  • Collaboration Challenges: Misaligned priorities or organizational silos can delay investigations, containment, and incident response, leaving environments vulnerable to prolonged threats. 

Shared responsibility gaps 

Cloud security operates on a shared responsibility model, but misunderstandings about roles can lead to vulnerabilities. This applies not only to teams within an organization but also to the division of responsibilities between the Cloud Service Provider (CSP) and the customer company. 

CSP vs. customer responsibilities: 

  • CSPs are typically responsible for the security "of" the cloud (infrastructure, physical security, etc.) 

  • Customers are responsible for security "in" the cloud (data, access management, application security, etc.) 

Misunderstandings in this area can lead to critical security gaps. For example, a company might assume the CSP handles all aspects of data encryption, when in fact, the customer is responsible for encrypting data at rest. 

Within an organization: 

  • Identity Management: Overlapping duties between SecOps and CloudSec teams may result in gaps in managing permissions or enforcing least privilege. 

  • Vulnerability Remediation: Teams may assume others are addressing critical issues, leading to unpatched vulnerabilities in production. 

  • Example: A miscommunication between teams about responsibility for patching a critical vulnerability could delay remediation, leaving an exploitable gap in the environment. 

Additional challenges: 

  • Configuration Management: Confusion about who manages and enforces cloud configurations can lead to misconfigurations and security risks. 

  • Incident Response: Unclear delineation of roles between CSP and customer during security incidents can delay effective response. Additionally, a lack of communication within an organization can also lead to delays during incident response.  

  • Compliance: Misunderstandings about which team is responsible for maintaining specific compliance requirements can lead to audit failures. 

Addressing these challenges requires a shift toward integrated tools and workflows, clear role definitions, and stronger collaboration across SecOps, CloudSec, and DevOps teams.