Cloud Computing

Every cloud computing service relies on the same remote infrastructure for a conceptual framework. Servers located in the data center power this framework. As there are a lot of similarities between them, we can consider this computing system as a pyramid with three layers. Every layer has its own specialty. However, the basic infrastructure is the same. Lower layers of the cloud computing system are broader, representing their customizability, versatility, and have a wide application range. The upper layers have a specific purpose to follow, so they are narrower. Below, you will find three cloud computing types and their difference to understand all the layers individually:

1.    IaaS

This cloud computing system is the foundation of the pyramid. Infrastructure as a Service is very flexible and compressive among all other cloud services that are available. With this computing system, you receive a virtualized infrastructure of cloud computing you can manage and provision through the cloud provider endpoints. The IaaS provider manages and controls all the physical infrastructures such as data storage space, servers, etc. This way, the customer can customize their virtualized resources according to their requirements. With Infrastructure as a service, you can buy virtual machines and install, organize, and manage any software you want to use. This includes applications such as development tools, business analytics, applications, middleware, and operating systems. Furthermore, you only have to pay for the virtual machine you are using. This will facilitate you in scaling your computing requirements as you need without building any additional capacity. Examples of IaaS are GCE (Google Compute Engine), AWS (Amazon Web Services), EC2, and Microsoft Azure virtual machines.

2.    PaaS

This computing system comes above IaaS in the cloud computing pyramid. Not like IaaS, Platform as a Service more specialized. Instead of providing a virtual machine to you, you get a specific purpose resource in the cloud, which you can put your workload on / or automate your cloud process. In the IaaS model, the customer is responsible for OS-level patching and maintenance. But in the PaaS model, those layers are hidden from the customer, and they can just focus on specific use cases. Microsoft Azure App Services, Apache Stratos, AWS Elastic Beanstalk, and Google App Engine are examples of Platform as a Service.

3.    SaaS

Many people are familiar with this type of cloud computing. SaaS is located at the highest level of the pyramid. Software as a Service is a completely developed software solution that you can instantly use through the internet after purchasing the subscription. Software as a service is responsible for managing data, operating systems, infrastructure, and middleware that is really important for delivering the program and to make sure that wherever and whenever a customer needs access, they always find it available. There is numerous software as service applications that you can directly run on your web browsers without the need for downloading and installing the application. This way, companies can reduce their software management problems for IT teams, and the company can streamline and simplify their operations with multi-cloud and hybrid deployments. The examples of Software as a Service are Google Apps, Salesforce, Cisco WebEx, and Microsoft Office 365.

Conclusion

Cloud computing has changed how companies all over the world operate, something that most people are unable to realize yet. It is essential to understand the types of cloud computing and choose the right one for your business to grow. Cloud computing is increasingly growing, which is opening many new opportunities for businesses looking forward to driving the results of their business and innovating.

How SQL Injection Attacks Work

 

Compared to other forms of cyber attacks, the SQL injection can be more complex and require some sophisticated coding skills. SQL is a declarative coding language that is specifically used to manage data. Essentially, an SQL attack technique works by inserting malicious code into applications. This changes the way databases respond to queries and allows hackers to gain access to user information, delete and edit code, create administrative rights and open a more permanent backdoor to the database. SQL injection attacks are a particularly damaging cyberattack that can affect a business both in the short and long term.

Why SQL Injection Attacks on are the Rise

According to a study by Akamai, SQL injection attacks represented 65% of all web based attacks between November 2017 and March 2019. This is a significant increase over previous years and the US is both receiving the most attacks and the largest source of attacks. The study also found that the gaming industry is being targeted. Hackers are able to gain login credentials from gaming accounts and then use this information to try to login to other accounts. This approach relies on the fact that most people use the same login information for multiple accounts.

The Infamous Heartland Attack

One of the biggest data breaches in history was the result of an SQL injection attack. In 2008, Heartland Payment Systems, which was the sixth largest payment processor at the time, discovered a major data breach that resulted in over 100 million cards being compromised. This sophisticated attack was launched by a team of hackers who identified SQL vulnerabilities and then made changes to the code so that they could remain undetected and collect sensitive card information. This data was then sold to other parties who could use it for their own criminal purposes.

Preventing SQL Injection Attacks

The best way to prevent any cyber attack is to understand your vulnerabilities. This means regularly running tests and updating and patching applications as needed. You can run manual tests or use automated testing tools for continuous monitoring. It is also important to use a firewall to help filter data and identify new vulnerabilities as they arise.

The nature of SQL injection attacks make them difficult to detect and damaging. For these reasons, they are becoming an increasingly popular form of cyber attacks and should be taken into account when creating any cloud security plan. If you want to learn more about SQL injection attacks and how you can work to protect your business, contact the team at prancer. We specialize in cloud security and compliance through validation frameworks. Contact us today.

What is phishing cyber attack?

Essentially, phishing involves sending a malicious email that looks like it is coming from a reliable and credible source. The goal is to get the recipient to click on a link or take other actions that will result in the hacker gaining access to data. This clever type of attack combines taps into our natural inclination to trust certain sources and uses technical bait to get us to download malware or send personal information.

Phishing tends to cast a rather wide net and hope that a few people will trust the email. However, there is a more targeted approach known as spear phishing. With this type of attack, the hacker actually conducts research on the target and creates a personal message. This makes it more likely that the recipient will trust the message. In some cases, the hacker will use the name of a familiar sender, including a co-worker or company. The email may also use a cloned website to make links appear credible and use the illegitimate website to collect login credentials or other data. Because of its targeted nature, spear phishing is difficult to identify and protect against.

It can be easy to fall victim to phishing cyberattacks, especially if you don’t know how they work or what to look out for as you check emails. A little education can go a long way in identifying potential problems and avoiding this type of attack. Keep in mind that even personalized emails can be a form of spear phishing, so take the time to verify the sender and any links as you work your way through your inbox. For more information about cloud security, phishing, and ways to prevent this type of attack, contact the experts at prancer.

Lessons from the Twilio Breach

The Twilio breach is another reminder that no matter how advanced and automated IaC and cloud technology becomes, it is still fundamentally a human system and that means that mistakes can be made. In addition, it shows that businesses have to be more careful even when it comes to open-source collaboration. Some assets should be publicly accessible so that users can view and create files, but there needs to be authentication and access gateways for other assets. Ultimately, the company did the best they could in the situation. You can’t prevent attacks, but you can create systems that will quickly identify problems so that you can immediately respond. Twilio also received praise from industry experts for being transparent about the incident and how they responded. This helps others to learn and hopefully avoid similar situations.

Ultimately, IaC is a valuable tool that represents a major evolution in technology. However, it is not a perfect system. Misconfiguration continues to be a top security concern. If you need help improving IaC security and ensuring continuous compliance, contact prancer. We specialize in cloud validation frameworks that will help you make the most of IaC and cloud technology.

SAAS Solutions

Prancer, a company that provides clients with a framework to validate resources that they deploy to the cloud, is excited to announce a long list of new features that are now a standard part of the prancer cloud, their SaaS solution. These new features further expand Prancer’s capabilities for cloud security and make the platform the pioneer of cloud compliance checks.

Prancer is dedicated to meeting the needs of enterprise businesses. They provide solutions for all the major cloud providers, including Azure, Google, and AWS services. Prancer provides pre-integrated compliance tests. These compliance tests are based on industry standards and include CIS, CSA CCM, HIPPA, ISO 27001, and many other available compliance tests.

To facilitate leveraging the prancer cloud validation framework for companies, prancer offers a free tier in the SaaS offering so that users can run a proof-of-concept before committing to the product. Businesses can integrate that to their DevSecOps process and validate their Infrastructure as Code (IaC). This will allow teams to better understand how prancer cloud can help their business with the aid of their pre and post-deployment compliance tests. Once users have experienced prancer, they can choose the right service tier based on their needs and their budget.

Prancer recognizes the power that Azure, Google, and AWS have in transforming the business world through advanced cloud platforms. That is why all of their SaaS tools are designed to work with these platforms and allow businesses to do even more than they thought possible. Users can enjoy better cloud governance and infrastructure as code that supports their DevOps and IT teams. These new features will seamlessly integrate with existing DevOps pipelines and allow users to write compliance queries based on the Open Policy Agent (OPA) query language. Spend less time worrying about managing software and data centers and more time focusing on business requirements.

As technology advances and more companies rely on cloud solutions, security becomes an increasing concern. With prancer SaaS, businesses can fully run compliance tests and scan codes before they are deployed to the cloud. No valuable data will be exposed to vulnerabilities because they are being fully vetted and confirmed as safe. Users can feel confident that they are protecting all their resources while also taking full advantage of all the benefits of the cloud.

The addition of these latest features to the prancer suite of tools and solutions again highlights the company’s commitment to staying ahead of the competition and empowering customers to reach new levels of success through technology.

About Prancer

Prancer Enterprise (https://www.prancer.io) was created with the goal of providing any size business with a cloud validation framework that enables cloud governance and multi-cloud validation compliance. By understanding the needs of today’s clients, creating innovative solutions, and collaborating through open-source networks, we are working to make cloud technology more secure and versatile.

To learn more about Prancer and how we can help your company, contact us today.

Immutable IaC and DevOps

The traditional mutable approach to infrastructure causes delays in the DevOps pipeline. Dependencies can make application deployments difficult and human innovation is actually slowed down by technology. Immutable IaC creates consistent environments that allow for automated testing and deployment that accelerates the DevOps process and eliminates delays and clogs in the pipeline.

With immutable IaC, teams don’t have to worry about manually validating changes. Everything can be handled through a continuous delivery pipeline that automates all the deployment and testing requirements. New applications can go online faster and all the usual risks associated with change can be eliminated.

Just because mutable infrastructures have been the standard doesn’t mean that they are the best solution. IT teams may be reluctant to let go of their manual update responsibilities, but automating tasks ultimately create more time and space for them to work on true innovations that can push the company forward.

If you have more questions about the benefits of immutable IaC and how you can implement this approach at your business, contact the experts at prancer. We specialize in cloud validation frameworks that support continuous compliance. We can provide you with advice, support and tools you need to take full advantage of cloud computing and IaC.

Infrastructure as Code Security and Compliance Approaches

In the past, cloud security practices relied on developers catching misconfigurations, identifying risks, and compliance violations after the system has already been provisioned and is essentially up and running. While this is certainly an effective approach for implementing and managing IaC, it can also be time-consuming. Developers are put in a position where they have to fix mistakes when they should be focusing on the creation and feeding of new ideas into the DevOps pipeline. This is changing as security mores “towards the left.

Shifting Security to the Left

If you have been keeping up with IaC news, you may be coming across the idea of shifting security to the left. Essentially, this means that organizations are working to change the relationship between developers and security professionals in order to improve both security and productivity. The best way to achieve this is by making sure that cloud security is a part of the CI/CD process. It is also important to thoroughly evaluate IaC templates so that they are addressing the compliance and security issues that can sometimes be ignored until runtime.

This shift helps to create a more collaborative relationship between security and developers. Security concerns can be addressed at the right time and place without interrupting the workflow. Traditionally, even a small misconfiguration could trigger compliance issues. Security teams would have to spend time trying to isolate the source of the problem before determining who on the DevOps team should be contacted in order to initiate the remediation process.

Improving Security and Productivity

IaC helps companies avoid these types of delays and improve productivity. Instead of having to create tickets, users can write code to build a template that automates aspects of the CI/CD process. The declarative language style of certain IaC tools makes it easy to balance loads, monitor compliance issues, and implement security controls. With IaC, companies aren’t forced into taking a reactive stance when it comes to security. Instead, they can be preventative and proactive by tackling security during the development process.

Perhaps the best way to move security to the left with IaC is to have security professionals create security guardrails that check the developer’s work and can integrate into their development and testing process. All testing should be used for a more comprehensive view of security risks. From there, developer’s tools need to be able to provide the right security guidance so that they know what steps to take when IaC reveals a security issue.

Benefits of IaC

If security and compliance can become better aligned with DevOps, there are a host of benefits. First and foremost, security risks and compliance issues won’t be put off to run time. Developers will also be more productive and experienced with resolving security issues with the help of IaC templates and automated tools. Finally, security and development will be more connected, which will help create better processes, collaboration, and job satisfaction.

To learn more about how IaC is powering today’s DevOps while also shifting security to the left, contact the experts at prancer. We are proud to help companies with cloud validation frameworks that support CI/CD.