Tag: AWS compliance

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AWS Web Application Firewall Blog

Ensure advanced security for Web Apps and API through effective implementation of AWS WAF Services

AWS WAF (Web Application Firewall) is a robust security tool that helps protect web applications and API from external threats like SQL injection and cross site scripting attacks. It consists of a set of rules that control access to the applications based on the IP addresses, geographic location, or user-agent strings.

AWS WAF helps in the effective monitoring of HTTP and HTTPS requests that are forwarded to the web application infrastructure. 

AWS WAF also provides logging and monitoring capabilities, allowing customers to review and analyze traffic patterns and security events to identify potential security threats and take appropriate actions.

Common threats faced by API and web applications.

Web applications and API are vulnerable to various kinds of attacks that lead to unprecedented downtime, privacy intrusion, or high bandwidth usage. The most common web attacks include:

  • DDoS attacks: This involves flooding a web application or API with traffic leading to application crashing or becoming unresponsive.
  • SQL injection: The process of inserting malicious SQL statements into a web application’s input fields by attackers to gain access to sensitive information stored in the database is known as SQL injection. 
  • Cross-site scripting: This involves injecting malicious scripts into a web page or API response which is then executed by the victim’s browser. These scripts can rewrite the content of the HTML pages.   

AWS helps protect web applications and API from typical vulnerabilities by allowing the users to set rules to monitor web traffic and help minimize web attacks. 

Steps to configure AWS WAF to protect web resources

  • Start by defining your security requirements, determine which resources you need to protect and the type of attacks that you want to secure your applications from.
  • Create a web ACL (Access Control List) which consists of a set of rules to block traffic from accessing the web application. 
  • The next step involves configuring a set of rules to protect web applications. AWS WAF consists of pre-configured rules that protect web applications against common attacks. This set of rules can be customized according to specific needs. 
  • Next define the conditions when the rule needs to be triggered. These conditions comprise of expressions that specify the attributes of the web requests, such as the IP address of the client or the type of the browser being used.
  • Finally, by integrating the Web ACL with the CloudFront distribution, API Gateway, or Application Load Balancer, you can deploy it to your web application.

Benefits of AWS WAF:

AWS WAF plays a major role in protecting your website against web attacks based on your specific criteria. The characteristics of web requests such as the following can be used to define specific criteria:

  • Requests originating from IP addresses.
  • The country from where the requests originate.
  • Header value of the requests.
  • The strings are included in requests, either specifically or by matching regular expression (regex) patterns.
  • Length of requests.
  • SQL injection that implies malicious SQL code.
  • Cross-site scripting that includes malicious script.
  • Rules that allow, block, or count web requests that meet certain criteria. A rule can also be configured to block or count web requests that meet the specified criteria but exceed a specified number of requests in a 5-minute period as well.
  • Rules that can be reused for multiple web applications.
  • A set of managed rule groups from AWS and AWS Marketplace sellers.
  • An analysis of real-time metrics and sample web requests.
  • Implementation of AWS WAF API for Automated administration.

Features of AWS WAF for robust protection against web attacks

  • Protection against common web exploits: AWS WAF allows you to protect your web applications against common web exploits such as SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), and other types of attacks.
  • Customizable rules: You can customize rules in AWS WAF to match your specific needs. This allows you to create rules that are tailored to your application and protect against the most common threats.
  • Scalability: AWS WAF is designed to be scalable, which means it can handle large volumes of traffic without impacting application performance.
  • Integration with other AWS services: AWS WAF can be integrated with other AWS services, such as Amazon CloudFront, AWS Elastic Load Balancing, and AWS Application Load Balancer. This allows you to protect your entire application stack, from the front-end to the back end.
  • Real-time monitoring and logging: AWS WAF provide real-time monitoring and logging capabilities, which allows you to detect and respond to threats in real-time.
  • Cost-effective: AWS WAF is a cost-effective solution for protecting your web applications. Resources are only charged based on usage, with no upfront costs or long-term contracts.

How to optimize performance through effective use of AWS WAF?

AWS WAF services lead to performance implications such as latency, higher processing overheads, and increased costs when not implemented in the right way. To avoid such implications, it is suggested to follow the below methods and optimize performance.

  • Customized use of AWS WAF: Not all web applications require a web application firewall. If your web application is not vulnerable to common web-based attacks, you may not need to use AWS WAF.
  • Use caching: Caching can help to reduce the number of requests that need to be inspected by AWS WAF. You can use caching solutions like Amazon CloudFront or Amazon Elasticache to cache frequently accessed content.
  • Use Amazon API Gateway: Amazon API Gateway can help to reduce the number of requests that need to be inspected by AWS WAF. You can use API Gateway to route requests to specific endpoints, reducing the number of requests that need to be inspected.
  • Optimize your AWS WAF rules: AWS WAF allows you to create custom rules to block or allow traffic. You can optimize these rules to reduce the processing overhead of AWS WAF.
  • Monitor your AWS WAF usage: Monitoring your AWS WAF usage can help you identify any performance bottlenecks. You can use Amazon CloudWatch to monitor your AWS WAF usage and identify any issues.

Best practices for implementing AWS WAF

AWS WAF best practices ensure the web applications are well protected from common threats and vulnerabilities. 

Some of the best practices for AWS WAF include:

  • Using managed rules
  • Create rules based on the security requirements to filter traffic.
  • Monitor AWS WAF logs to identify potential threats.
  • Regularly update AWS WAF rules to ensure the application is protected against the latest threats.
  • Use AWS WAF with other security services to provide a more comprehensive security solution for web applications.
  • Test the WAF rules for proper working and maximize performance.
  • AWS security automation provides a dashboard that is customized to provide insights into potential threats and the protection that AWS WAF provides.

Case Study

AWS WAF is a robust security solution helping companies to improve their overall security posture and protect their web applications and API from external threats. Below mentioned are two case studies of organizations that have successfully implemented AWS WAF and achieved complete protection of their resources.

  1. Oricred: Oricred is a financial services organization that offers loans and financial services to all sectors of society. They used AWS WAF to protect their web applications from security threats such as SQL injection and cross-site scripting (XSS). By using AWS WAF, they were able to monitor their traffic, block malicious requests, and respond to threats in real-time. The effective implementation of AWS WAF included custom managed security rules to protect web applications and APIs against potential threats.
  2. Property Adviser: Property Adviser, a real estate giant, implemented a comprehensive security solution to ensure the security of customer data. They implemented AWS WAF through a set of rules and achieved complete protection for the customer-facing applications. AWS WAF helped secure the customer information and protect web applications against common web exploits and bots facilitating its growth strategy.

GoDgtl by Prutech, an Advance AWS partner, has successfully implemented AWS WAF and achieved complete protection for the applications through a set of managed rules for both Oricred and Property Adviser.

Conclusion

AWS WAF is a comprehensive security solution for organizations looking to secure their crucial web applications and API from cyber-attacks and external threats.

AWS WAF provides logging and monitoring capabilities, allowing customers to review and analyze traffic patterns and security events to identify potential security threats and take appropriate actions.

GoDgtl by Prutech, an Advanced Consulting Partner of AWS offers the latest security solutions for customers across the world. Our expertise team of cloud engineers have successfully implemented customized AWS WAF solution for organizations of various business verticals.

Contact us today to learn more about our services and how we can help your business thrive in the cloud era. Contact 24/7 – GoDgtl (go-dgtl.in).

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AWS Services and Solutions Blog

Embracing a Cloud-First Strategy for Securing Financial Services

In our rapidly evolving digital landscape, the adoption of a cloud-first strategy has become a pivotal consideration for businesses seeking to optimize their IT operations. This strategic approach not only offers a multitude of advantages but also aligns perfectly with the dynamic nature of modern business requirements. Particularly in the financial sector, where data security, flexibility, and scalability are paramount, the shift towards cloud-first practices has proven to be transformative.

Benefits of a Cloud-First Approach for Securing Financial Services

  • Scalability and Flexibility: The financial services sector experiences fluctuations in demand driven by market trends, seasons, and economic conditions. Cloud-first adopters witness an average of 40% reduction in infrastructure costs through efficient resource allocation. This enables financial organizations to seamlessly scale their operations up or down in response to changing needs, all without significant upfront capital investments. The result? Enhanced agility to keep pace with evolving business requirements while maintaining operational efficiency.
  • Enhanced Data Security: The financial domain deals with highly sensitive data, necessitating rigorous security measures. Cloud providers specialize in implementing robust security protocols, backed by substantial investments in cutting-edge technology and expertise. Notably, 62% of financial institutions have reported improved data security after migrating to the cloud. These measures encompass multi-layered security, encryption, threat detection, and compliance certifications. Such meticulous security practices ensure the integrity and confidentiality of financial data, fostering trust among clients and stakeholders.
  • Reduced IT Costs: The financial sector is no stranger to the costs associated with maintaining on-premise infrastructure and managing complex IT environments. The adoption of a cloud-first strategy yields substantial financial benefits, with businesses typically experiencing a 35% decrease in operational costs. By eliminating the need for extensive hardware procurement, maintenance, and upgrades, organizations can redirect valuable resources toward core business activities, innovation, and enhancing customer experiences. This cost optimization contributes to bolstering profitability and financial resilience.
  • Robust Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity: In a sector as critical as finance, ensuring uninterrupted business operations is paramount. Cloud providers seamlessly integrate disaster recovery and business continuity solutions into their offerings. Businesses adopting a cloud-first strategy report a remarkable 70% faster recovery time objective (RTO) in case of unforeseen disruptions. By leveraging cloud-based recovery solutions, financial organizations ensure minimal downtime and swift recovery, safeguarding their reputation and customer trust.
  • Fostered Collaboration and Heightened Productivity: The contemporary business landscape thrives on collaboration and real-time decision-making. Cloud-first financial institutions experience a 30% increase in employee productivity due to enhanced collaboration tools. By leveraging cloud-based solutions, financial organizations can streamline communication, knowledge sharing, and project management. This facilitates seamless access to critical data and applications from any device, anytime, fostering efficient teamwork and expedited decision-making. The result is improved operational efficiency and the ability to respond promptly to market dynamics.

Conclusion: 

In the realm of financial services, the adoption of a cloud-first strategy transcends mere choice – it has become a strategic imperative. The diverse benefits, ranging from scalability and data security to cost efficiency and enhanced collaboration, position financial institutions to proactively navigate industry challenges. By embracing this strategy, financial organizations ensure reliable, secure, and efficient services for their clients, reinforcing their competitive edge.

By partnering with GoDgtl by Prutech, financial entities can maximize the advantages of their cloud-first journey. Our expertise in providing tailored security solutions for the financial sector ensures a seamless transition, empowering organizations to deliver trustworthy, efficient, and innovative services.

Contact us today to learn more about our services and how we can help your business thrive in the cloud era. Contact 24/7 – GoDgtl (go-dgtl.in).

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AWS Cloud Security Case Studies

Case Study | Golftripz Optimizes AWS infrastructure performance with Security & Compliance Services

  • Post author By GoDgtl
  • Post date

Golftripz has been around since 2009, started by people intensely passionate about golf, as an endeavor to deliver delightful golf holiday experiences to golfers from around the world.

Golftripz has reached out to golfers from more than 30 countries across 5 continents. The passion to deliver great experiences at great value are the core philosophy at Golftripz, which gets more intense by the day with increased motivation from seeing golfers happy with their services.

The Challenge

Golftripz migrated the infrastructure from a colocation facility to AWS by their Application partner. They experienced explosive growth and expanded their services to 30 countries across 5 continents.

The partner supporting Golftripz at that time configured the AWS environment as per the application strategy, but the company must follow all security parameters and compliances to fulfil their financial institution’s requirements. While the team was able to build the application successfully, challenges were faced when it came to infra management, providing security parameters and compliance, and providing reports for financial audits.

To ensure the uptime of a Golf Holidays platform, GolfTripz needed a cloud service provider with the expertise and resources to stabilize its existing AWS environment, build a new modernized environment, and provide ongoing management and monitoring along with Security Compliance.

The Solution

  • To solve these challenges, Golftripz collaborated with GoDgtl by PruTech, which delivered its Security Monitoring and compliance services to tune the existing environment and prevent security threats on the platform.
  • GoDgtl provided its Security & Compliance solution, which included an 8/5 team of cloud operations engineers to monitor the security findings and health of the Golftripz environment, apply system patches, and run system back-ups. The service also provided cloud analysts to identify cost-optimization opportunities.
  • GoDgtl also delivered Managed Services to improve the AWS environment. Enhancements included auto-scaling to spin up new servers and load balancing for effective handling of workload spikes, instance resizing, and image building using the Amazon Machine Image service.
  • To increase the security posture of the GoDgtl AWS environment, AWS Security Hub was used to benchmark the security policies. The AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) policies were reviewed, and configuration changes were applied. GoDgtl also created a self-serve, multi-factor authentication policy along with the removal of public write access to Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3) and closing ports on Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) to block attacks.
  • Specific improvements applied by GoDgtl include auto-scaling and load balancing of AWS compute resources, access management, and intrusion prevention system, threat management system implementation. With these capabilities, GolfTripz has stabilized its security features and been able to submit the security reports for their IT and financial Audits. The company also created a stronger security posture to protect sensitive data.
  • GoDgtl by Prutech is an AWS advanced consulting partner. AWS cloud services are preferred due to the reliability, scalability, and cost-efficiency they provide to businesses. AWS consists of a host of services that help deliver reliable and secure products on the cloud. Following the AWS tools helped us achieve cost-efficiency and enhanced performance.

Results & Benefits

  • Created stronger security posture to protect sensitive data
  • Reduced cloud infrastructure costs as payments were made for actual usage
  • Stabilized security performance to eliminate threats
  • Stabilized the infrastructure and continuous enhancement

About GoDgtl

GoDgtl by PruTech is an Advanced Consulting Partner of AWS. Through our innovative and customized cloud services, we help our customers to design, architect, build, migrate, and manage their workloads and applications on cloud, accelerating their journey to the cloud. We offer cost-effective and secure cloud solutions through the effective implementation of the latest cloud technologies and processes that are highly scalable and compatible with changing market demands.

Our cloud managed services are offered through a holistic approach to the cloud

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AWS Cloud Security Case Studies

Case Study | Skandhanshi implement robust security for their cloud infrastructure

  • Post author By GoDgtl
  • Post date

Skandhanshi Infra Projects Pvt Ltd, a real estate firm with 12+ years of experience in construction sector. Skandhansi has a legacy of developing real estate projects spread across various parts of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Karnataka.

Skandhanshi Infra Projects Pvt. Ltd. offers its services through advanced technology implementation with the mission of providing an excellent level of service and expertise to customers.

The Challenge

Skandhanshi infrastructure was on Hybrid model where they had challenges related to performance, availability as well security. As the data was scattered maintaining regular backups was impacting the business growth.

Every day, thousands of home, commercial complex, villas buyers, agents and property managers, browse Skandhanshi website and application Cloud9 to get the information of upcoming and ongoing projects. Due to heavy flow of traffic there was a challenge in delivering the information with high maintenance cost.

The major concern was lack of information availability on application Cloud9 and Skandhanshi websites due to low bandwidth and misconfiguration of server resulting in security breaches and downfall of respective resources.

To ensure a scalable and reliable infrastructure, Skandhansi engage GoDgtl by PruTech a cloud service provider with expertise in migration, modernization and security solutions adhering security compliance for respective industry.

The Solution

  • GoDgtl by Prutech was successful in migrating the on-premises infrastructure to AWS cloud. The customer noticed variations in results and performance of application. They achieved scalability and increased performance through the secured migration of on-premises infrastructure to the cloud.
  • GoDgtl implemented the latest AWS cloud services and achieved enhanced website performance, regular monitoring and maintenance of server backups, and a secure cloud environment. A secured, scalable, and extendable cloud structure with AWS services.
  • Various AWS services like EC2, GuardDuty, Inspector, IAM, Macie, CloudWatch, CloudTrial, WAF, and Security Hub added multiple layers of security to their application.
  • Amazon CloudWatch custom metrics and alerts to enhance security and compliance for the client.
  • GoDgtl used Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) and created an isolated virtual network to enable ease of access and improve productivity. Implementation of a Web Application Firewall (WAF) provided security against intrusion and hacking. Implementation of data encryption and decryption through the effective use of EC2 and KMS services ensured complete security for the website.

Results & Benefits

  • Migration of on-premises workloads to the cloud.
  • GoDgtl offered a cost-effective solution through the effective management and monitoring of cloud services. Skandhanshi achieved cost optimization and a robust solution to handle their back-up related issues.
  • Effective implementation of cloud migration services helped achieve up to 30%-40% of cloud maintenance costs.
  • The auto-scaling tool enabled up or down scaling of the application based on the specific business needs.
  • Implemented complete security for the cloud infrastructure through robust AWS security tools.
  • Achieved autoscaling and high availability of resources.
  • The implementation of IAM, MFA, WAF, and PC ensured the overall security of the client infrastructure on the AWS Cloud.
  • CloudWatch helped us to provide continuous support and monitoring of the services.
  • Offered backup support for cloud data.

About GoDgtl

GoDgtl by PruTech is an Advanced Consulting Partner of AWS. Through our innovative and customized cloud services, we help our customers to design, architect, build, migrate, and manage their workloads and applications on cloud, accelerating their journey to the cloud. We offer cost-effective and secure cloud solutions through the effective implementation of the latest cloud technologies and processes that are highly scalable and compatible with changing market demands.

Our cloud managed services are offered through a holistic approach to the cloud

Categories
AWS Cloud Security Case Studies

Case Study | Oricred delivers secure financial services

  • Post author By GoDgtl
  • Post date

Oricred Finserv Pvt. Ltd. has been incorporated in the year 2018. It operates with a vision to be the largest NBFC providing loans and financial services to all segments and sectors of society using the latest technology solutions. It has its major operations in Odisha and intends to spread its services to other parts of the country.

Oricred offers its services through the mobile application – Mobicred – which is a new-age financial services platform.

The Challenge

Mobicred, a financial services platform offers loans to people across the country using the latest technology solutions.

The customer infrastructure was hosted on-Premises where the application was frequently experiencing the issue with performance due to lack of scalability and compatibility features. The impact of performance not only effected the high maintenance cost also had challenges in monitoring the vulnerabilities and security breaches on the VPS.

As the hosted infrastructure was on single server the customer had to face challenges in handling the varying workloads as the existing platform was not supporting the delivery of bulk promotional emails which also impacted the sales promotions.

While exploring the Cloud Solution providers Oricred engage GoDgtl by PruTech for ease of migrating on-premise infrastructure to cloud for better performance and a solution that adheres the PCI Compliance.

The Solution

  • GoDgtl by PruTech proposed Oricred with Cloud Migration and Security Solution to overcome the challenges for better performance, availability and security.
  • In the process of migration GoDgtl team hosted the customer data and vital resources on 5 different servers to achieve higher availability and increased performance. Applications and Database were migrated to Amazon Compute Services as well a comprehensive solution for site-to-site VPNs, data migrations, and general security was implemented.
  • Implementation of Route 53 for load balancing, Auto-scaling for high availability, Amazon workspace through VDI, and Cloud watch for monitoring the application functionality was done.
  • To ensure overall security of the infrastructure hosted on AWS and PCI Compliance various security tools such as Identity Access Management (IAM) and policies were implemented. Cloud access system was secured by implementing Multi-Factor-Authentication (MFA).
  • To enable ease of access and improve productivity an isolated virtual network was created using AWS Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) with implementation of Web Application Firewall (WAF) for security against intrusion and hacking.
  • With the help of AWS Cloud Migration and Security Solutions GoDgtl team approached an integrated solution for migration resulting in overcoming the challenges with high performance, availability and secured environment.
  • Oricred achieved better performance and could send around 50,000 promotional emails after the implementation of AWS cloud services.

Results & Benefits

  • Ease of availability by migrating the applications and respective databases to Amazon Compute services.
  • Better performance and scalability of application by enabling the auto-scaling tool feature.
  • Achieved PCI compliance.
  • Ease of balancing workloads with implementation of Route 53.
  • Infrastructure hosted on AWS cloud was secured by implementation of security solutions such as IAM, MFA, WAF and VPC
  • Implementation of CloudWatch helped to fix the operational issues and performance.
  • Continuous monitoring of infrastructure hosted on AWS Cloud helped in minimizing the risk resulting in stability and reliability
  • Enhanced cloud security by implementing KMS
  • Offered backup support for cloud data.

About GoDgtl

GoDgtl by PruTech is an Advanced Consulting Partner of AWS. Through our innovative and customized cloud services, we help our customers to design, architect, build, migrate, and manage their workloads and applications on cloud, accelerating their journey to the cloud. We offer cost-effective and secure cloud solutions through the effective implementation of the latest cloud technologies and processes that are highly scalable and compatible with changing market demands.

Our cloud managed services are offered through a holistic approach to the cloud

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Case Studies

Case Study | Security as a Service for Water Health International

Water Health International is an India-based company that offers customers safe, affordable drinking water through its community water systems.

As Water Health business applications was hosted on virtual private servers facing a challenge in performance as well security breaches on the VPS which impacted their business continuity.  

GoDgtl provided Water Health with migration of application to AWS cloud using EC2 with security tools IAM, AWS inspector, and AWS GuardDuty for data security which helped them to enhance their business performance and high availability.

Download our case study to read the complete case study and solution.

Learn more about GoDgtl’s cloud computing services here.