Brutalist Security Guide: IaC, CI/CD, and Cloud Provisioning

This guide applies the principles of Security Brutalism to how we build and deploy our infrastructure. We'll focus on Infrastructure as Code (IaC), CI/CD pipelines, and cloud provisioning. The goal is a secure, resilient, and efficient process, stripped of unnecessary complexity.

Brutalist Principles for Infrastructure

1. Immutable Infrastructure: Infrastructure should be treated as immutable. Any change requires replacing the entire component, not modifying it in place. This ensures consistency and reduces drift.
2. Declarative Configuration:Define the desired state of your infrastructure, not the steps to achieve it. This simplifies management and reduces errors.
3. Explicit Dependencies: Clearly define all dependencies between components. This ensures that everything is provisioned in the correct order and that nothing is left to chance.
4. Minimalism: Provision only the resources you absolutely need. Avoid over-provisioning and unnecessary features.
5. Transparency: All infrastructure configurations and deployments should be auditable and easily understood.

Brutalist Infrastructure as Code (IaC)

IaC is the foundation of our approach. We treat infrastructure configuration like software code, allowing for automation, version control, and repeatability.

Tools

Choose IaC tools that are simple, well-established, and have strong community support. Avoid tools with excessive abstraction or proprietary languages.

Practices

General:

• Version Control: Store all IaC code in a version control system (Git for example).
• Code Reviews: Implement mandatory code reviews for all IaC changes.
• Testing: Write automated tests for your IaC code to verify that it provisions resources correctly and securely.
• Architecture: Break down your infrastructure into small, reusable modules.
• Documentation: Keep your IaC code well-documented. Explain the purpose of each module and resource.

Security:

• Least Privilege: Grant the IaC deployment process only the necessary permissions.
• Secrets Management: Never store secrets (passwords, API keys, etc) in your IaC code. Use dedicated secrets management tools (HashiCorp Vault, AWS Secrets Manager).
• Static Analysis: Use tools to scan your IaC code for security vulnerabilities.

Brutalist CI/CD

We use CI/CD to automate the deployment of infrastructure changes. This ensures that deployments are consistent, repeatable, and secure.

Tools

Use a CI/CD system that is reliable and integrates well with your IaC tools (GitHub Actions, GitLab CI/CD, Jenkins, etc).

Pipeline Stages

• Build: Validate IaC code. Run static analysis. Plan the deployment.
• Test: Run automated tests against a test environment. Verify that the infrastructure is provisioned correctly and securely.
• Deploy: Apply the IaC changes to the production environment. Implement a controlled rollout to minimize downtime and risk.
• Rollback: Have a clear and automated process for rolling back changes in case of failure.

Security Best Practices

• Secure your CI/CD pipeline itself.
• Use strong authentication and authorization.
• Limit access to sensitive credentials.
• Ensure that deployments are immutable. If a change is needed, a new deployment is created.
• Log all CI/CD activity for auditing and accountability.

Brutalist Security Systems and Cloud Provisioning

Security is not an afterthought; it's an integral part of how we provision and manage our infrastructure.

Practices

• Secure Defaults: Configure all cloud resources with secure defaults.
• Disable public access by default.
• Enforce encryption.
• Enforce encryption.
• Principle of Least Privilege: Grant cloud resources only the minimum necessary permissions.
• Policy as Code (PaC): Define and enforce security policies using code.
• Use tools like to define security rules.
• Integrate PaC into your CI/CD pipeline to prevent non-compliant deployments.
• Monitoring and Logging:
• Implement comprehensive monitoring and logging for all cloud resources.
• Use a centralized logging system to collect and analyze logs.
• Set up alerts for suspicious activity.
• Vulnerability Management:
• Regularly scan cloud resources for vulnerabilities.
• Patch vulnerabilities promptly.
• Immutable Images: Use immutable images for your servers and containers. This reduces the attack surface and ensures consistency.
• Infrastructure Hardening: Harden your operating systems and applications according to security best practices (e.g., CIS benchmarks).

Cloud Provider Security

Leverage the security features provided by your cloud provider. For example:

• AWS Security Hub
• Google Cloud Security Command Center

To Close

Following these principles and practices enables you to build a robust and secure infrastructure using IaC, CI/CD, and modern cloud provisioning techniques. This approach prioritizes security, automation, and simplicity, allowing you to deploy and manage your infrastructure with confidence.