Best practices for CloudHSM

Here are some guidelines to ensure the security and efficiency of CloudHSM:

• Access control: Just as with KMS, implement the principle of least privilege. Ensure that only authorized personnel can perform cryptographic operations in CloudHSM.
• Audit logging: Enable audit logging both in CloudHSM and KMS to keep a record of all cryptographic operations.
• High availability: Always configure your CloudHSM clusters across multiple availability zones (AZs) to ensure high availability. KMS, by default, is designed to be highly available, but when integrating with CloudHSM, the onus is on you to ensure that the HSMs are also fault-tolerant.
• Key rotation: While KMS supports automatic key rotation, CloudHSM does not. You will need to implement your own key rotation logic when using CloudHSM, either manually or by using custom automation scripts.
• Disaster recovery: Given the critical nature of cryptographic keys, it is essential to have a backup strategy in place. While AWS provides high availability, having a disaster recovery plan specifically for your cryptographic keys is crucial.

Compliance in AWS key management

KMS and CloudHSM allow organizations to align with a range of industry standards and certifications, which are particularly crucial for organizations operating in regulated sectors. Here are some key standards:

• FIPS 140-2: Both KMS and CloudHSM are FIPS 140-2 validated, ensuring that they meet US federal standards for secure cryptographic modules. However, KMS is validated at Level 2, while CloudHSM offers Level 3 validation. This higher level provides tamper-evident hardware and stricter security requirements, which might be mandated by specific compliance regulations.
• PCI DSS: While KMS and CloudHSM can aid in PCI DSS compliance, AWS Payment Cryptography has been more recently added to AWS’s service offering to provide focused features tailored to organizations handling cardholder data.
• HIPAA: Healthcare organizations can leverage AWS key management services to meet HIPAA requirements for protecting sensitive patient data.
• General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR): Both services are designed to help you meet the GDPR requirements, particularly concerning data encryption and pseudonymization.

While AWS provides the tools and services to facilitate compliance, organizations must adopt best practices to ensure they fully meet regulatory requirements:

• Regular audits: Periodically review your key policies, access controls, and usage logs in CloudTrail to ensure ongoing compliance with evolving regulations.
• Data classification: Not all data is created equal. Classify your data based on sensitivity and apply encryption and key management practices accordingly. For instance, personally identifiable information (PII) might require more stringent controls than other types of data.
• Key rotation: Regularly rotating cryptographic keys is a staple of many compliance standards. Ensure that you have processes in place, whether manual or automated, to rotate keys in both KMS and CloudHSM.
• Access control: Restrict access to cryptographic keys based on the principle of least privilege. Regularly review policies to ensure that only authorized entities can access and manage keys.
• Documentation: Maintain comprehensive documentation of all cryptographic operations, policies, and procedures, including key creation, rotation, and deletion procedures. This not only aids in audits but also ensures that key management practices are transparent and reproducible.

AWS key management services are not just about providing robust security; they are about building a framework that enables organizations to meet compliance requirements. Transitioning from the realm of key management, let’s explore the critical aspect of data protection in essential AWS services.