How To Advance Container Network Security in Kubernetes

As enterprises work to innovate quickly and adapt to rapidly changing demands, they’ve come to rely heavily on containers. Container technology offers the flexibility, efficiency and scalability needed for the modern IT infrastructure. 

However, the shift from traditional perimeter security to network security within Kubernetes clusters has given rise to new challenges. Securing containerized environments is critical to mitigate emerging threats, yet traditional security models fall short. Enterprises must pivot to a more dynamic and granular security approach that addresses the unique nature of containers. 

4 Common Obstacles Faced by Enterprises

Much of the challenge in securing containers within Kubernetes lies in the nature of the architecture, which is dynamic, distributed and microservices-oriented. Organizations often face the following obstacles:

1. The Dynamic and Ephemeral Nature of Containers: Containers are often short-lived and can be spun up or spun down within seconds. And while this transient nature is beneficial for scalability and resource efficiency, it makes monitoring and security challenging. Many traditional tools are not well-equipped to adapt to the rapidly changing nature of containers. 
2. Increased Attack Surface: Each container essentially serves as an entry point. This magnifies the attack surface of the Kubernetes environment and increases vulnerabilities exponentially. 

3. Lack of Native Security Controls: Kubernetes is a top-notch orchestration platform. Yet its native network security features are minimal, so enterprises have to bring on additional tools to fill in those gaps and mitigate risks.

4. Traffic Visibility Issues: Containers communicate through internal networks. As a result, east-west (or intra-cluster) traffic is hard to access with traditional security tools. Security teams have limited visibility, which means malicious activity can quickly go undetected within a cluster.

Begin With Visibility Into East-West Traffic

Securing Kubernetes networks requires visibility into intra-cluster communication. Ultimately, you want to have a clear understanding of how pods, services and workloads are interacting so you can detect any unauthorized access or malicious activity. Here are some key strategies to keep in mind:

• Monitoring East-West Traffic: Doing so makes sure all interactions between containers are scrutinized. Any usual patterns, connections or other activity could indicate a potential breach. 
• Deep Packet Inspection (DPI): DPI is different from traditional firewalls in that it doesn’t just analyze packet headers — it also examines the full content of data packets. This granular approach to network traffic analysis allows for the detection of sophisticated threats such as zero-day vulnerabilities. The proactive nature of DPI makes it a key strategy for identifying and neutralizing risks in real time.
• Network Segmentation: Enterprises should also segment networks to restrict the lateral movement of threats. This strategy isolates any workloads that have been compromised, minimizing damage from breaches and attacks.

Best Practices for Strengthening Kubernetes Container Network Security

As enterprises work to improve Kubernetes container network security, a zero trust model designs policies with the paradigm of “never trust, always verify.” This modern approach to security dictates that authentication and authorization of connections (internal and external). It allows for an improved security posture against all potential threats. 

Tools like SUSE Rancher Prime provide added security to Kubernetes clusters, with security capabilities like continuous monitoring and automated policy management. Continuous monitoring provides much-needed real-time visibility into container network traffic, which is dynamic and complex. Automated security policies reduce the potential for human error. Also follow the best practice of microsegmentation by isolating workloads based on roles, which will allow you to contain potential breaches in the event of an incident.

DPI, Zero Trust and Microsegmentation

The security capabilities in SUSE Rancher Prime provide the tools modern enterprises need to address these common challenges. Our suite of tools are designed to elevate Kubernetes network security through an open source foundation and enterprises capabilities, including:

• DPI for Layer7 Visibility: Enterprises can detect and mitigate threats in real time before they have a chance to impact critical systems for all Kubernetes defined and undefined network traffic. 

• Zero Trust Network Security: SUSE Security enforces a zero trust model by automatically blocking unauthorized connections and controlling east-west traffic. This capability ensures only legitimate connections can occur within the cluster and real-time blocking of zero day threats.
• Microsegmentation: SUSE Security enables micro-segmentation to create isolated environments for different workloads. Attackers are unable to move laterally across containers, which significantly reduces the risk of widespread breaches.

The Value of Open Source Container Security

SUSE’s open source foundation drives transparency and innovation for enterprises. Security teams can inspect and audit the code as needed, ensuring trust. Community contributions and enhancements are vital to keeping security measures as up-to-date as possible. Open source tools are often more cost effective, especially when compared to proprietary solutions.

Learn More about Advanced Tools for Advanced Control and Visibility

Kubernetes is a mainstay for enterprise containerized workloads. Securing these container networks within the modern IT infrastructure is more important than ever. 

Instead of relying on lacking native security controls, enterprises can lean on the power of advanced tools like SUSE Rancher Prime’s security capabilities. These tools deliver enhanced visibility, greater control and protection in enterprise Kubernetes environments. 

Secure your Kubernetes environment with SUSE’s advanced tools. Download the Dummies Guide to Zero Trust Container Security today.