Cloud Security Engineer Role - razmipatel/Random GitHub Wiki

Cloud Security Engineer is focused on the tactical implementation and operational excellence of security controls within the cloud. A Cloud Security Architect is focused on the strategic design, governance, and assurance that the cloud environment is secure by design, often leading initiatives and shaping the security roadmap. Both roles are critical and often collaborate closely. Engineers are typically hands-on implementers and operators, while Architects are strategic designers and visionaries.

**Essential shared core azure security skills for both Engineer and Architect**

  1. Cloud Platform Fundamentals

  • Core Services - Strong grasp of IaaS, PaaS services such as compute (VMs, Azure Container Instances, Azure Kubernetes Service - AKS, Azure Functions, Azure App Service), storage (Blob, File, Disk, Table, Azure SQL Database, Cosmos DB), and networking (Virtual Networks, Subnets, Network Security Groups - NSGs, Azure Firewall, Load Balancers, Application Gateway, VPN Gateway, ExpressRoute).

  • Infrastructure as Code - Understanding how to deploy and manage resources as code

  • Shared Responsibility Model - !!!!!

  1. Privileged Identity Management

  • Microsoft Entra ID - Deep knowledge of user management, groups, roles, Conditional Access, Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA), B2B/B2C, and Privileged Identity Management (PIM).

  • Managed Identities - Understanding and implementing Managed Identities for Azure resources to secure service-to-service communication.

  • Service Principals - Creating and managing Service Principals for automated deployments and applications.

  • Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) - Designing and implementing custom RBAC roles and assignments following the principle of least privilege. Understanding about ABAC, Zero trust principle of least privilege (PoLP)

  1. Azure Network Security

  • Network Security Groups (NSGs) & Application Security Groups (ASGs) - Configuring and managing traffic filtering rules.

  • Azure Firewall - Deployment and management of Azure's native cloud-native firewall.

  • Azure Application Gateway & Web Application Firewall (WAF): Protecting web applications from common web vulnerabilities.

  • Azure Private Link & Service Endpoints: Securing access to Azure PaaS services.

  • DDoS Protection: Understanding and implementing Azure DDoS Protection.

  • AKS CNI networking, istio service mesh, cilium

  1. Azure Data Security

  • Encryption at Rest & In Transit - Implementing Azure Disk Encryption, Storage Service Encryption, Transparent Data Encryption (TDE) for databases, and TLS/SSL for communication.

  • Azure Key Vault - Managing and securing cryptographic keys, secrets, and certificates.

  • Microsoft Purview Information Protection - Data classification, labeling, and protection.

  • Defense in depth principles

  1. Azure Security Monitoring & Operations

  • Microsoft Defender for Cloud - Utilizing for security posture management, security recommendations, threat protection, and vulnerability management (CNAP, CSPM, CWPP)

  • Azure Monitor & Azure Log Analytics - Collecting, analyzing, and visualizing logs from Azure resources for security insights.

  • SIEM - Deploying, configuring, and managing a cloud-native SIEM for security information and event management, and Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response (SOAR).

  • Azure Audit Logs & Activity Logs: Understanding and utilizing these for auditing and forensic analysis.

  1. Azure Governance & Compliance

  • Azure Policy - Defining, assigning, and managing policies to enforce organizational standards and assess compliance. Understanding policy definitions, initiatives, assignments, and exemptions.

  • Microsoft Cloud Adoption Framework for Azure (CAF) - Understanding its security and governance pillars.

  • Compliance Offerings - Familiarity with compliance certifications (NIST 800-53 Rev4 or Rev5, CIS) and how Azure services help meet these.

  • Very good understanding on shared responsibilities operating models

  • Zero Trust and Zero Trust Networking Architecture principles

  1. DevSecOps on Azure

  • Integrating security practices into DevOps pipelines (CI/CD).

  • Using tools like Azure DevOps, GitHub Actions, and integrating security scanning tools (SAST, DAST, IaC scanning, checkov, OWASP ZAP, SonarQube, ratify, codesign, trivy).

  • Understanding the concept of "shifting left" security.

  1. Scripting - Strong scripting skills for automating security tasks, managing resources, and configuring services.

  2. Threat Modeling

  • Applying threat modeling methodologies (e.g., STRIDE) to Azure-specific architectures and applications.

**Cloud Security Engineer Specific Skills (Hands-on Implementation & Operations)**

Engineers are hands-on with Azure security services and day-to-day operations.

  1. Implementation & configuration

  • Expertise in the actual deployment and configuration of Azure security services (e.g., setting up NSGs, configuring Azure Firewall rules, deploying Azure Key Vault, integrating Defender for Cloud with Log Analytics).

  • Hardening Azure VMs (OS-level security, patch management).

  • Configuring Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) security (network policies, pod security policies, image scanning integration).

  • Implementing security for Azure PaaS services (e.g., securing Azure App Service, Azure SQL Database, Azure Storage accounts).

  1. Automation & Orchestration

  • Writing DSL for secure infrastructure deployment.

  • Developing automation scripts using Python, PowerShell or Azure CLI for security tasks (e.g., rotating secrets, automating vulnerability remediation).

  • Building automated security checks into DevOps pipelines using security tools.

  • Developing playbooks and automation rules

  1. Vulnerability Management on Azure

  • Performing vulnerability assessments on Azure resources using Defender for Cloud or third-party tools.

  • Managing and prioritizing remediation of vulnerabilities identified in Azure environments.

  1. Security Operations (SecOps)

  • Monitoring Azure security alerts and incidents in Microsoft Defender for Cloud and Azure Sentinel.

  • Investigating security incidents and performing forensic analysis within Azure.

  • Responding to security incidents and executing containment, eradication, and recovery steps.

  • Fine-tuning security alerts and rules to reduce false positives.

  1. Data Governance - Implementing data governance policies, data mapping, and data loss prevention (DLP) for Azure data services.

**Cloud Security Architect Specific Skills (Strategic Design & Governance)**

Architects focus on the strategic design, governance, and long-term security posture of Azure environments.

  1. Azure Security Architecture Design:

  • Translating business requirements and risk appetite into comprehensive security architectures.

  • Designing secure patterns for common cloud workloads (e.g., secure landing zones, hybrid cloud security architectures, secure multi-tenant designs).

  • Creating detailed design documents, diagrams (e.g., Visio, Draw.io), and architectural blueprints for security.

  1. Designing security for enterprise scale environments

  2. Governance

  • Developing and implementing organization-wide Azure Policy definitions and initiatives to enforce complex security and compliance requirements.

  • Defining blueprint strategies for consistent and secure environment provisioning.

  • Designing strategies for Azure Policy exemptions and their lifecycle.

  • Mapping regulatory compliance frameworks (e.g., CIS, NIST 800-53 Rev4 or Rev5) to Azure services and configurations.

  1. Risk Management

  • Leading threat modeling sessions for complex cloud applications and infrastructure designs.

  • Conducting comprehensive risk assessments of cloud environments and proposing mitigation strategies.

  • Defining the organization's security posture and risk metrics for Azure.

  1. Cloud Security Strategy & Roadmap

  • Developing and evolving the organization's overall cloud security strategy for Azure.

  • Evaluating new Azure security services and third-party security tools for adoption.

  • Staying ahead of emerging Azure threats and best practices.

  1. Cross-Functional Leadership & Communication

  • Highly effective communication to C-level executives, technical teams, and business stakeholders.

  • Influencing security-aware development and operations practices (DevSecOps).

  • Guiding and mentoring Cloud Security Engineers.

  • Bridging the gap between technical security implementations and business objectives.

  1. Cost Optimization (Security Focus)

  • Designing security solutions that are cost-effective within cloud pricing model.

  • Well-Architected Framework (Security Pillar)

  • Deep understanding and application of the security pillar of the Well-Architected Framework in design decisions.

Recommended certifications:

**Engineer**:

  • AZ-500: Microsoft Certified: Azure Security Engineer Associate (Core for the role)

  • AZ-104: Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate (Strong prerequisite knowledge)

  • SC-200: Microsoft Certified: Security Operations Analyst Associate (Useful for SecOps focus)

**Architect**:

  • AZ-305: Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert (Requires AZ-104 first, but essential for design)

  • SC-100: Microsoft Certified: Cybersecurity Architect Expert (Highly recommended, focuses on holistic security strategy)

  • AZ-500: Microsoft Certified: Azure Security Engineer Associate (Often beneficial for architects to have implementation context)

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