Strengthen Your Container Runtime Security: A Deep Dive Into Cloud Native Protection

Container runtime security is a vital aspect of the shift towards cloud native architectures. The container runtime phase is the backbone of agile application deployment and resource management, however, it is also, arguably, the most vulnerable stage of a container’s lifecycle.

When containers execute their operations, Cybercriminals can easily exploit vulnerabilities, misconfigurations or even the container orchestration platform itself. Continuous monitoring during this phase is crucial for enabling security teams to detect anomalous behaviors, enhance policies and respond to threats instantly. A proactive approach, like zero trust security, not only safeguards applications but also fortifies the entire cloud native infrastructure against evolving threats.

Let’s examine what exactly container runtime security entails and how you can achieve it.

What is Container Runtime Security?

Container runtime security refers to the protective measures and protocols used to safeguard containers in operation. As containers execute applications in dynamic cloud native environments, they’re exposed to various internal and external threats. Internal threats can arise from misconfigured container settings, inadequate access controls or compromised internal services. External threats typically involve cyberattacks that target vulnerabilities in containerized applications or the orchestration platform managing them. Given the ephemeral nature of containers, ensuring robust runtime security is crucial for maintaining the integrity, confidentiality and availability of applications in production.

However, securing containers at runtime presents unique challenges. The dynamic nature of container environments means workloads can change frequently, complicating the enforcement of consistent security policies. Additionally, because containers operate in clusters, maintaining security across multiple instances becomes more complex. The risk of zero-day vulnerabilities — exploits for which no patch is available — further complicates runtime security, necessitating real-time monitoring and rapid incident response capabilities.

The Difference Between Static Security and Runtime Security in Production

It’s important to discuss the difference between static security applied during development and runtime security in production. Static security involves assessing container images before deployment to ensure they’re free from known vulnerabilities, while runtime security focuses on real-time protection of live containers. This includes monitoring container behavior, enforcing security policies and detecting anomalies as they occur. Enterprises need a comprehensive security strategy addressing development and runtime phases to fully protect their containerized applications.

The Importance of Container Runtime Security

Containerized environments offer incredible agility and scalability, but they also introduce unique security challenges that demand careful attention. Unlike traditional applications, containers share the host kernel, making runtime protection vital to prevent attacks from spreading across the system. Failing to address container runtime security can lead to devastating breaches, data loss, and disruption of critical services. Here are some of the most critical threats security teams must be prepared to mitigate:

Configuration Drift

Configuration drift happens when a container’s runtime environment deviates from its intended secure configuration. This can occur due to manual changes, automated updates, or inconsistencies between development, testing, and production environments. This drift can introduce vulnerabilities, expose sensitive data, and create compliance violations. 

Kernel Exploits

Containers share the host OS kernel, so a vulnerability in the kernel can be exploited to compromise the entire containerized environment. A successful kernel exploit can grant attackers root access to the host and all running containers, leading to complete system takeover. 

Malicious Code

Malicious code can take many forms within a containerized environment. Attackers can exploit unknown vulnerabilities in applications or libraries running within containers (zero-day exploits). Compromised container images or dependencies can introduce malicious code into the environment (supply chain attacks). 

Privilege Escalation Attacks

Attackers constantly seek ways to exploit vulnerabilities or misconfigurations within containers to gain elevated privileges. Privilege escalation allows attackers to access sensitive data, modify system settings, or even escape the container and compromise the host. 

Malware in Container Images

Attackers can embed malware within container images, which can then be distributed through public or private registries. This malware can compromise the entire containerized environment, steal data, launch denial-of-service attacks, or be used as a stepping stone for further attacks. Image scanning, vulnerability analysis, and secure image registries are crucial to prevent the use of infected images.

Secrets Leakage

Secrets, such as API keys, passwords, and certificates, are often required by containerized applications. Secrets leakage can compromise application security, lead to data breaches, and enable attackers to gain unauthorized access to systems and data.

How to Identify Container Runtime Security Threats

Effective container security relies on proactive threat identification. Here are key methods to help you spot potential risks:

Continuous Real-time Monitoring

Constantly observe container activity, including system calls, network connections, and resource usage. Real-time monitoring allows for immediate detection of suspicious behavior, enabling rapid response. Tools like Prometheus, Grafana, and Falco can be invaluable.

Behavioral Analytics

Establish baselines of normal container behavior and use machine learning to identify anomalies that could indicate malicious activity. This can flag unusual network traffic, unexpected process execution, or access to sensitive files, helping to detect previously unknown threats and zero-day exploits.

Snapshot Scanning

Take periodic snapshots of running containers and scan them for vulnerabilities, malware, and misconfigurations. This can identify threats missed during the build process or that emerge during runtime.

Mapping and Analysis

Visualize the relationships between containers, networks, and other components of the containerized environment. This helps identify potential attack paths, vulnerabilities in network configurations, and dependencies that could be exploited.

Intrusion Detection Systems (IDS)

IDS monitor network traffic and system activity for known attack patterns and malicious behavior, providing an additional layer of security by detecting intrusions and alerting security teams.

System Call Monitoring

Track the system calls made by containers to identify potentially malicious actions. This can detect attempts to escalate privileges, access sensitive files, or execute malicious code.

Best Practices for Improving Container Runtime Security

To enhance container runtime security, there are key strategies organizations must follow:

1. Network Segmentation 

Network segmentation is one effective strategy, particularly through microsegmentation. This approach isolates workloads within container environments, significantly limiting the attack surface. By creating fine-grained security policies that control traffic between containers, organizations can prevent lateral movement within their networks, reducing the risk of breaches affecting multiple workloads. 

2. Kubernetes-Orchestration Security

The network segmentation approach is particularly beneficial for Kubernetes container security as protection must extend beyond individual containers to include the orchestration layer. Tools like SUSE Rancher Prime can help with this by implementing policies that safeguard against vulnerabilities and misconfigurations at both the container and orchestration levels. This creates a multi-layered defense strategy to address potential breaches before they occur. 

3. Real-Time Monitoring

Additionally, enterprise container security platforms can prevent internal and external intrusions in real-time by actively monitoring network traffic and container behavior. SUSE Cloud Native Security’s advanced behavioral analytics capabilities enhance this protection by detecting abnormal patterns in container runtime. By continuously analyzing these behaviors, the solution can identify potential zero-day vulnerabilities before exploitation, providing essential protection.

4. System Audits and Updates

Maintaining up-to-date container hosts and images is crucial. Regularly patching the underlying OS and container images minimizes vulnerabilities that attackers could exploit. Implement a robust patch management process to ensure timely updates.

5. Least Privilege

Adhere to the principle of least privilege by granting containers only the necessary permissions to function. Avoid running containers as root and use capabilities to restrict access to sensitive system resources. This limits the potential damage from a compromised container.

6. Just-in-Time Access

Implement just-in-time access control to limit the duration of access to containers. This reduces the window of opportunity for attackers and minimizes the risk of unauthorized access.

How SUSE Rancher Prime Improves Container Runtime Protection

To further protect containers during runtime, there’s SUSE Cloud Native Security. The solution offers comprehensive container security within Rancher Prime, emphasizing real-time monitoring and runtime protection. With the platform, organizations gain deep visibility into container activity, enabling them to detect suspicious behavior as it occurs. By leveraging real-time monitoring, SUSE Security ensures potential threats are identified and addressed before they escalate, significantly enhancing the overall security posture of containerized applications.

SUSE Rancher Prime also automates policy enforcement, ensuring security protocols are consistently applied across all containers. This automation helps mitigate the risks associated with human error, which can lead to security gaps and compliance issues. By maintaining strict adherence to security policies, organizations can confidently operate their containerized environments, gaining peace of mind that they’re secure and compliant with industry standards.

Zero Trust Security Measures for Strengthening Cloud Native Security

For container environments to adhere to compliance and industry standards as well as security protocols, they must be continuously monitored and audited. Doing so allows organizations to identify and address vulnerabilities before they can be exploited. By maintaining a vigilant security posture, companies can effectively safeguard their applications against emerging threats. 

For example, SUSE Rancher Prime can automatically quarantine or terminate suspicious containers, effectively limiting the damage from an attack. The solution also adheres to security best practices, like automated vulnerability scanning, network segmentation and policy enforcement which further enhances overall cloud native security. 

One additional benefit of SUSE Rancher Prime’s security capabilities is seamless integration into existing CI/CD pipelines for continuous security across the container lifecycle. The integration allows for real-time vulnerability scanning and compliance checks, ensuring their security measures are consistently applied from development to production. Additionally, SUSE Security empowers enterprises to customize their security policies and tailor them to their unique container workloads and compliance requirements, further enhancing runtime protection.

Using security platforms like SUSE Rancher Prime that follow these proactive measures enables organizations to build a robust defense against potential security breaches.

Securing the Future of Cloud Native Environments with Container Runtime Security

Keeping containers secure during runtime is critical in protecting cloud native environments from evolving threats. Real-time monitoring provides visibility into container activities, allowing for early detection of suspicious behavior before it escalates. Coupled with robust policy enforcement, this ensures consistent application of security protocols. Additionally, automated responses further enhance security by quickly isolating or terminating compromised containers, minimizing potential damage. Together, these strategies form a comprehensive framework essential for safeguarding applications.

With SUSE Rancher Prime’s security capabilities, organizations benefit from end-to-end container security, from development through runtime. When used with the strategies above, organizations can enjoy peace of mind knowing they’re protected from evolving threats and compliant with industry standards.

Want to learn more about container security? Download the Ultimate Guide to Kubernetes Security.

Container Runtime Security FAQs

Are containers secure?

No, not inherently. Vulnerabilities can exist in the image, application, or host. Robust security is needed throughout the container lifecycle. SUSE provides comprehensive solutions to address these concerns.

What is container runtime scanning?

Analyzing running containers for vulnerabilities, malware, and misconfigurations. It helps identify threats missed during the build or that emerge during runtime. SUSE offers tools to automate and enhance this process.

What tools does SUSE offer for container runtime security?

• SUSE Security (previously known as NeuVector): This comprehensive runtime security platform provides vulnerability scanning, intrusion detection, and behavioral analytics to protect containerized workloads.
• SUSE Rancher Prime: This Kubernetes management platform includes security features like network policies and role-based access control (RBAC) to secure your orchestration layer.

Who is responsible for securing containers during runtime?

It’s a shared responsibility! Developers, operations teams, and security teams must collaborate for comprehensive container runtime security.