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Security Documentation

This document provides an overview of the security aspects of the Secure CINC Auditor Kubernetes Container Scanning platform.

Directory Contents

For a complete listing of all files in this section, see the Security Documentation Inventory.

Security Framework

The platform is built on a comprehensive security framework that covers:

  1. Security Principles: Core principles guiding our security design
  2. Risk Analysis: Assessment of security risks and mitigations
  3. Compliance: Alignment with security standards and frameworks
  4. Threat Model: Analysis of threats and mitigation strategies
  5. Recommendations: Best practices and implementation guidance

Key Security Features

Feature Description Benefit
Temporary Tokens Service account tokens with 15-minute default lifespan Reduces risk of credential compromise
Targeted RBAC Role-based access control scoped to specific pods Minimizes potential attack surface
Label-based Restrictions RBAC rules that can target pods by labels Provides flexible, precise access control
Time-limited Access Credentials valid only for the duration of a scan Prevents persistence of unnecessary access
Non-privileged Scanning Scanning without requiring privileged containers Maintains container security boundaries

Security Approach by Scanning Method

Each scanning approach implements security controls appropriate for its method, with varying risk profiles:

  • Kubernetes API Approach

    Risk Level: 🟢 Low

    • Uses least-privilege RBAC with temporary service account tokens
    • Requires access only to specific pods in target namespaces
    • Creates time-limited credentials for each scan
    • Most secure approach from a compliance perspective
    • Uses standard vendor-supported interfaces

    Details

  • Debug Container Approach

    Risk Level: 🟡 Medium

    • Creates temporary debug containers for scanning
    • Requires ephemeral container permissions
    • Removes debug containers after scanning
    • Implements appropriate RBAC controls for ephemeral container creation
    • Temporarily breaks container isolation

    Details

  • Sidecar Container Approach

    Risk Level: 🔴 High

    • Uses pod-level isolation with shared process namespace
    • Requires no cluster-wide permissions
    • Scans directly from within the pod
    • Implements appropriate container security contexts
    • Permanently breaks container isolation within pod

    Details

Risk Level Comparison

Approach Overall Risk Required Privileges Attack Surface Isolation Impact Compliance Burden NSA/CISA Alignment
Kubernetes API 🟢 Low 🟢 Minimal 🟢 Small 🟢 None 🟢 Low 🟢 Strong (90%)
Debug Container 🟡 Medium 🟡 Moderate 🟡 Medium 🟡 Temporary 🟡 Medium 🟡 Moderate (70%)
Sidecar Container 🔴 High 🟡 Moderate 🔴 Larger 🔴 Permanent 🔴 High 🟠 Limited (50%)

See our NSA/CISA Hardening Guide Compliance documentation for detailed mappings.

Security Documentation Structure

Our security documentation is organized into focused sections:

Security Principles

Core security design principles including:

Risk Analysis

Comprehensive risk assessment including:

Compliance

Alignment with security frameworks including:

Threat Model

Analysis of security threats including:

Recommendations

Best practices and guidance including: