Practitioner Certificate in Cloud Security

This NCSC Assured five-day course is focused on Cloud Security, encompassing Cloud Security Architecture, DevSecOps, Data and Cloud Assurance aspects, Governance, Cloud Security Operations and Web Application Security.

The course spans cloud security principles, patterns and architectural frameworks, data protection and compliance for cloud-based applications, data and infrastructure, and the design, development and implementation of cloud security architectures. This course that will expose you to a variety of cloud security and assurance aspects across the 3 big cloud computing platforms - AWS, Azure and GCP. It has been specifically blended with 20+ of the most update to date Cloud labs, from our Cloud Academy platform.

We will review the wide range of technical security controls available using Cloud Service Provider and partner technologies, automation and DevSecOps, assurance, audit, and security testing of cloud-based services. Containers and serverless architectures will be introduced and their security implications reviewed. Agile DevOps methodologies will be covered and the use of a Continuous Integration Pipeline for security improvements, validation, and testing.

Continuous Professional Development (CPD)

CPD points can be claimed for NCSC assured training courses at the rate of 1 point per hour of training for NCSC assured training courses (up to a maximum of 15 points).

Delegates will learn about the following topics:

• Cloud Concepts
• Virtualisation
• Network Security Fundamentals
• AWS Core Services
• AWS Security Technologies
• Azure Core Services
• Azure Security and Microsoft 365
• Google Cloud Core Services
• Google Cloud Security
• Cloud Security Frameworks, Principles, Patterns and Certifications
• Container Security
• Cloud Native Computing
• Serverless
• Assurance
• Web Application Security
• Cloud Identity Services
• Cloud Security Services
• Automation and Continuous Integration
• DevSecOps

There are no pre-requisites. However, we recommend that all delegates have an understanding of the general technologies, for example Operating Systems and Networking and Security principles.

For those delegates looking for some pre-course general cloud security background, guidance and organisational compliance, the NCSC cloud security collection is probably the single best resource.

Target Audience

This course is aimed at technical and security specialists looking to develop and operate secure applications and systems using an agile DevOps methodology with fully automated deployments to cloud environments.

DAY ONE

Introduction

• Introductions
• Objectives of course
• Agenda

Cloud Concepts

• What is Cloud Computing?
• Why is everyone moving to the Cloud?
• Cloud computing model
• Infrastructure, Platform and Software as a Service
• Boundaries and responsibilities
• Cloud Service Providers – Gartner Magic Quadrant(s)
• Cloud reference architectures

Virtualisation

• Overview of different virtualisation technologies and types covering storage, networks and systems.

Network Security Fundamentals

• IPv4 and IPv6
• DNS
• Firewalls
• Network Address Translation
• IPSec VPN

AWS Core Services

• EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud) and VPC (Virtual Private Cloud) fundamentals
• Availability zones and regions
• Internet Gateway, Elastic IPs, NAT Gateway
• VPN Gateway, DirectConnect
• VPC Peering, AWS Transit Gateway
• Security Groups, Flow Logs, NACLs and subnet routing
• Route53
• Amazon S3

Related Labs

• AWS - Introduction to Virtual Private Cloud (VPC)
• AWS - Create Your First Amazon S3 Bucket
• AWS - Create Your First Amazon EC2 Instance (Windows)
• AWS - Create Your First Amazon EC2 Instance (Linux)

Knowledge Check – Quiz

• End of module knowledge check – exam style questions

DAY TWO

AWS Security Technologies

• AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM)
• AWS Organizations and SSO
• AWS CloudTrail, CloudWatch, Config, Trusted Advisor
• AWS CloudFront and Shield
• AWS WAF and Firewall Manager
• AWS Certificate Manager
• AWS Key Management Service (KMS) and CloudHSM
• AWS Secrets Manager
• AWS Inspector, Macie and Guard Duty
• AWS Artifact and Audit Manager
• AWS Security Hub
• Amazon Detective
• AWS PrivateLink and VPC Endpoints
• AWS EC2 Nitro

Azure Core Services

• Azure regions and availability zones
• Azure Active Directory
• Azure AD Connect
• Azure role-based access control
• Azure Virtual Networks
• Azure Network Security Groups
• Application Security Groups
• Remote Access and VPN
• Load Balancing
• Azure Front Door
• Azure network security best practices

Azure Security Services

• Azure Key Vault
• Azure Firewall
• Azure Virtual Machine encryption
• Microsoft Antimalware for Azure Cloud Services and Virtual Machines
• Azure Policy
• Azure Security Center
• Azure Monitor, Log Analytics and Alerts
• Azure Sentinel
• Enterprise Azure architectures

Microsoft 365 and Azure AD security

• Microsoft 365 services
• Azure AD and Microsoft 365
• Microsoft 365 security
• Microsoft Defender
• Microsoft 365 data protection and governance
• Azure AD Conditional Access and MFA
• Azure AD Password Protection
• Azure AD Identity Protection
• Azure AD Privileged Identity Management

Google Cloud core services and Google Workspace

• Google Cloud Platform services
• Compute
• Networking
• Storage and databases
• Big Data
• GCP example architecture
• Google Workspace
• Google Workspace integration with corporate directory

• Google Cloud Fundamentals: Getting Started with GKE

Related Labs

• AWS - Detecting Malicious Web Requests With AWS Web Application Firewall
• AWS - Encrypting S3 Objects Using SSE-KMS
• Azure - Secure Your Cloud with Microsoft Defender for Cloud
• Azure - Using Conditional Access Policies to Enable Azure AD Multi-Factor Authentication
• Azure - Managing Access in Azure Using Privileged Identity Management
• GCP - Create a Network Infrastructure with Google Virtual Private Cloud
• GCP - Inspecting and De-Identifying Data With Google Cloud Data Loss Prevention

Knowledge Check – Quiz

• End of module knowledge check – exam style questions

DAY THREE

Google Cloud Security

• Identity and Access Management
• Network Security
• VPC Service Controls
• Cloud Armor
• IAP Proxy and BeyondCorp
• Confidential and shielded VMs
• Keys and Encryption
• Certificate Services
• Secret Manager
• Logging
• Organization policy constraints
• Data Loss Prevention API
• Web Security Scanner
• Container Registry Vulnerability Scanner
• Cloud Security Command Center
• Forseti

Cloud Security Frameworks, Principles and Patterns

• Security Principles
• Separation and layers as security controls
• Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) Cloud Control Matrix
• GOV.UK Cabinet Office and NCSC Cloud Security Principles
• Security Architecture Frameworks
• Security Architecture Patterns
• Cloud Security Architecture Patterns
• Trusted Cloud Initiative Reference Architecture

Data Protection and Compliance

• Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and Personal Data
• UK Data Protection Act and Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)
• European Union (EU) Data Protection Directive
• EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
• Cyber Essentials Plus
• Cloud Security Alliance STAR
• PCI DSS
• AICPA SOC3
• ISO 27001

Container Security

• Concept of containers
• Docker
• Why development teams are moving to containers
• Security issues of containers
• Container security good practice
• CIS Benchmark for Docker and Docker Bench tool
• Orchestration – Kubernetes
• Security features of Kubernetes
• Orchestration – Docker Swarm
• Cloud Service Provider container platforms (AWS, Azure, Google)
• Container security solutions (Twistlock, AquaSecurity)

Cloud Native Computing

• Cloud Native Computing Foundation
• 12 Factors of a cloud-native app
• Cloud Native platform concepts
• Cloud Foundry
• Cloud Foundry security best practices

Related Labs

• GCP - Inspecting and De-Identifying Data With Google Cloud Data Loss Prevention
• Containers - Scanning Container Images for Known Vulnerabilities
• AWS - Associating AWS IAM Roles with Amazon EKS Service Accounts

Knowledge Check – Quiz

• End of module knowledge check – exam style questions

DAY FOUR

Serverless

• Concept of ‘serverless’
• Pros and Cons
• AWS Lambda
• Step functions
• Dynamo DB
• SQS, SWS, S3
• Serverless application architecture
• Security implications
• Environment Variable encryption
• Azure Cloud Functions
• Google Cloud Functions
• Serverless Framework

Assurance

• Centre for Internet Security (CIS) Foundation Benchmarks
• Penetration tests of cloud environments
• External audit and configuration review

Web Application Security

• OWASP Top 10
• Secure Software Development Lifecycle

Cloud Identity Services

• SAML
• oAuth, oAuth 2.0 and OpenID Connect
• Cloud Identity Providers

Related Labs

• AWS - Introduction to AWS Lambda
• AWS - Creating Scheduled Tasks with AWS Lambda
• AWS - Detecting EC2 Threats with Amazon GuardDuty
• OWASP - Multiple Labs

Knowledge Check – Quiz

• End of module knowledge check – exam style questions

DAY FIVE

Cloud Security as a Service

• Cloud Security Services
• Cloud analytics, e.g. Splunk Cloud
• Cloud security operations management, e.g. AlertLogic

Automation, DevSecOps and Continuous Integration

• Cloud service provider automation tools
• Terraform by Hashicorp
• Hardened build images
• Vault by Hashicorp
• Patching and update strategies
• DevSecOps
• Continuous Integration Pipeline
• Automated environment testing
• Jenkins
• Security issues

Related Labs

• AWS - Deploying Wordpress using AWS CloudFormation
• AWS - Static Code Analysis Within CI/CD Pipelines

Knowledge Check – Quiz

• End of module knowledge check – exam style questions

EXAM

The exam is taken post class using an exam voucher code via the APMG proctor platform.

If you experience any issues, please contact the APMG technical help desk on 01494 4520450.

Duration

60 Minutes

Questions

50, multiple choice (4 multiple choice answers only 1 of which is correct)

Pass Mark

50%