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🛡️ AWS RDS Instance is publicly accessible🟢

Logic​

Similar Policies​

Similar Internal Rules​

RulePoliciesFlags
✉️ dec-x-f937c35f1

Description​

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Description​

Ensure and verify that RDS database instances provisioned in your AWS account do restrict unauthorized access in order to minimize security risks. To restrict access to any publicly accessible RDS database instance, you must disable the database Publicly Accessible flag and update the VPC security group associated with the instance.

Rationale​

Ensure that no public-facing RDS database instances are provisioned in your AWS account and restrict unauthorized access in order to minimize security risks. When the RDS instance allows unrestricted access (0.0.0.0/0), everyone and everything on the Internet can establish a connection to your database and this can increase the opportunity for malicious activities such as brute force attacks, PostgreSQL injections, or DoS/DDoS attacks.

Audit​

From Console​
  1. Log in to the AWS management console and navigate to the RDS dashboard at https://console.aws.amazon.com/rds/.
  2. Under the navigation panel, On RDS Dashboard, click Databases.
  3. Select the RDS instance that you want to examine.

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Remediation​

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Remediation​

Using AWS CloudFormation​

  • CloudFormation template (YAML):
AWSTemplateFormatVersion: '2010-09-09'
Description: Disable public accessibility on an existing RDS instance

Parameters:
  DBInstanceIdentifier:
    Type: String
    Description: Identifier of the existing RDS DB instance

Resources:
  SecureRdsInstance:
    Type: AWS::RDS::DBInstance
    Properties:
      DBInstanceIdentifier: !Ref DBInstanceIdentifier
      PubliclyAccessible: false

From Command Line​

  1. Run describe-db-instances command to list all RDS database names identifiers, available in the selected AWS region:
aws rds describe-db-instances --region <region-name> --query 'DBInstances[*].DBInstanceIdentifier'
  1. The command output should return each database instance identifier.
  2. Run modify-db-instance command to modify the selected RDS instance configuration. Then use the following command to disable the Publicly Accessible flag for the selected RDS instances. This command use the apply-immediately flag. If you want to avoid any downtime --no-apply-immediately flag can be used:

... see more

policy.yaml​

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Linked Framework Sections​

SectionSub SectionsInternal RulesPoliciesFlagsCompliance
💼 APRA CPG 234 → 💼 36d access management controls —only authorised users, software and hardware are able to access information assets (refer to Attachment B for further guidance);1414no data
💼 APRA CPG 234 → 💼 36e hardware and software asset controls —appropriate authorisation to prevent security compromises from unauthorised hardware and software assets;1616no data
💼 APRA CPG 234 → 💼 36f network design — to ensure authorised network traffic flows and to reduce the impact of security compromises;2930no data
💼 APRA CPG 234 → 💼 45 An understanding of plausible worst case scenarios can help regulated entities identify and implement additional controls to prevent or reduce the impact of such scenarios. One example is malware that infects computers and encrypts data, both on the infected computer and any connected storage, including (corporate) networks and cloud storage. Such attacks reinforce the importance of protecting the backup environment in the event that the production environment is compromised. Common techniques to achieve this include network segmentation, highly restricted and segregated access controls and network traffic flow restrictions.3537no data
💼 APRA CPG 234 → 💼 52d appropriate segmentation of data, based on sensitivity and access needs;1010no data
💼 APRA CPG 234 → 💼 53 Wholesale access to sensitive data (e.g. contents of customer databases or intellectual property that can be exploited for personal gain) would be highly restricted to reduce the risk exposure to significant data leakage events. Industry experience of actual data leakage incidents include the unauthorised extraction of debit/credit card details, theft of personally identifiable information, loss of unencrypted backup media and the sale/trade or exploitation of customer identity data.1010no data
💼 AWS Foundational Security Best Practices v1.0.0 → 💼 [RDS.2] RDS DB Instances should prohibit public access, as determined by the PubliclyAccessible configuration11no data
💼 CIS AWS v1.5.0 → 💼 2.3.3 Ensure that public access is not given to RDS Instance - Level 1 (Automated)11no data
💼 CIS AWS v2.0.0 → 💼 2.3.3 Ensure that public access is not given to RDS Instance - Level 1 (Automated)11no data
💼 CIS AWS v3.0.0 → 💼 2.3.3 Ensure that public access is not given to RDS Instance - Level 1 (Automated)11no data
💼 CIS AWS v4.0.0 → 💼 2.2.3 Ensure that RDS instances are not publicly accessible (Automated)1no data
💼 CIS AWS v4.0.1 → 💼 2.2.3 Ensure that RDS instances are not publicly accessible (Automated)1no data
💼 CIS AWS v5.0.0 → 💼 2.2.3 Ensure that RDS instances are not publicly accessible (Automated)1no data
💼 CIS AWS v6.0.0 → 💼 3.2.3 Ensure that RDS instances are not publicly accessible (Automated)1no data
💼 Cloudaware Framework → 💼 Public and Anonymous Access116no data
💼 FedRAMP High Security Controls → 💼 AC-3 Access Enforcement (L)(M)(H)3784no data
💼 FedRAMP High Security Controls → 💼 AC-4 Information Flow Enforcement (M)(H)237105no data
💼 FedRAMP High Security Controls → 💼 AC-4(21) Physical or Logical Separation of Information Flows (M)(H)1163no data
💼 FedRAMP High Security Controls → 💼 SC-7 Boundary Protection (L)(M)(H)10884no data
💼 FedRAMP High Security Controls → 💼 SC-7(4) External Telecommunications Services (M)(H)49no data
💼 FedRAMP High Security Controls → 💼 SC-7(5) Deny by Default — Allow by Exception (M)(H)19no data
💼 FedRAMP High Security Controls → 💼 SC-7(21) Isolation of System Components (H)37no data
💼 FedRAMP Low Security Controls → 💼 AC-3 Access Enforcement (L)(M)(H)84no data
💼 FedRAMP Low Security Controls → 💼 SC-7 Boundary Protection (L)(M)(H)49no data
💼 FedRAMP Moderate Security Controls → 💼 AC-3 Access Enforcement (L)(M)(H)84no data
💼 FedRAMP Moderate Security Controls → 💼 AC-4 Information Flow Enforcement (M)(H)189no data
💼 FedRAMP Moderate Security Controls → 💼 AC-4(21) Physical or Logical Separation of Information Flows (M)(H)63no data
💼 FedRAMP Moderate Security Controls → 💼 SC-7 Boundary Protection (L)(M)(H)768no data
💼 FedRAMP Moderate Security Controls → 💼 SC-7(4) External Telecommunications Services (M)(H)49no data
💼 FedRAMP Moderate Security Controls → 💼 SC-7(5) Deny by Default — Allow by Exception (M)(H)19no data
💼 GDPR → 💼 Art. 25 Data protection by design and by default1010no data
💼 GDPR → 💼 Art. 46 Transfers subject to appropriate safeguards22no data
💼 ISO/IEC 27001:2013 → 💼 A.9.4.1 Information access restriction1920no data
💼 ISO/IEC 27001:2022 → 💼 5.10 Acceptable use of information and other associated assets1127no data
💼 ISO/IEC 27001:2022 → 💼 5.15 Access control1431no data
💼 ISO/IEC 27001:2022 → 💼 8.3 Information access restriction1024no data
💼 ISO/IEC 27001:2022 → 💼 8.4 Access to source code822no data
💼 NIST CSF v1.1 → 💼 PR.AC-4: Access permissions and authorizations are managed, incorporating the principles of least privilege and separation of duties1756no data
💼 NIST CSF v1.1 → 💼 PR.DS-5: Protections against data leaks are implemented4791no data
💼 NIST CSF v2.0 → 💼 DE.CM-01: Networks and network services are monitored to find potentially adverse events180no data
💼 NIST CSF v2.0 → 💼 DE.CM-09: Computing hardware and software, runtime environments, and their data are monitored to find potentially adverse events181no data
💼 NIST CSF v2.0 → 💼 ID.AM-03: Representations of the organization's authorized network communication and internal and external network data flows are maintained89no data
💼 NIST CSF v2.0 → 💼 PR.AA-05: Access permissions, entitlements, and authorizations are defined in a policy, managed, enforced, and reviewed, and incorporate the principles of least privilege and separation of duties133no data
💼 NIST CSF v2.0 → 💼 PR.DS-01: The confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data-at-rest are protected187no data
💼 NIST CSF v2.0 → 💼 PR.DS-02: The confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data-in-transit are protected160no data
💼 NIST CSF v2.0 → 💼 PR.DS-10: The confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data-in-use are protected184no data
💼 NIST CSF v2.0 → 💼 PR.IR-01: Networks and environments are protected from unauthorized logical access and usage123no data
💼 NIST SP 800-53 Revision 5 → 💼 AC-4 Information Flow Enforcement3269123no data
💼 NIST SP 800-53 Revision 5 → 💼 AC-4(15) Information Flow Enforcement _ Detection of Unsanctioned Information910no data
💼 NIST SP 800-53 Revision 5 → 💼 AC-4(21) Information Flow Enforcement _ Physical or Logical Separation of Information Flows3763no data
💼 NIST SP 800-53 Revision 5 → 💼 SC-7 Boundary Protection29493no data
💼 NIST SP 800-53 Revision 5 → 💼 SC-7(4) Boundary Protection _ External Telecommunications Services49no data
💼 NIST SP 800-53 Revision 5 → 💼 SC-7(5) Boundary Protection _ Deny by Default — Allow by Exception419no data
💼 NIST SP 800-53 Revision 5 → 💼 SC-7(11) Boundary Protection _ Restrict Incoming Communications Traffic37no data
💼 NIST SP 800-53 Revision 5 → 💼 SC-7(16) Boundary Protection _ Prevent Discovery of System Components37no data
💼 NIST SP 800-53 Revision 5 → 💼 SC-7(21) Boundary Protection _ Isolation of System Components37no data
💼 PCI DSS v3.2.1 → 💼 1.1 Establish and implement firewall and router configuration standards7139no data
💼 PCI DSS v3.2.1 → 💼 1.2.1 Restrict inbound and outbound traffic to that which is necessary for the cardholder data environment, and specifically deny all other traffic.1065no data
💼 PCI DSS v3.2.1 → 💼 1.3 Prohibit direct public access between the Internet and any system component in the cardholder data environment.7842no data
💼 PCI DSS v3.2.1 → 💼 1.3.1 Implement a DMZ to limit inbound traffic to only system components that provide authorized publicly accessible services, protocols, and ports.628no data
💼 PCI DSS v3.2.1 → 💼 1.3.2 Limit inbound Internet traffic to IP addresses within the DMZ.28no data
💼 PCI DSS v3.2.1 → 💼 1.3.4 Do not allow unauthorized outbound traffic from the cardholder data environment to the Internet.15no data
💼 PCI DSS v3.2.1 → 💼 1.3.5 Permit only “established” connections into the network.28no data
💼 PCI DSS v3.2.1 → 💼 1.3.6 Place system components that store cardholder data in an internal network zone, segregated from the DMZ and other untrusted networks.15no data
💼 PCI DSS v3.2.1 → 💼 7.2.1 Coverage of all system components.11no data
💼 PCI DSS v4.0.1 → 💼 1.2.1 Configuration standards for NSC rulesets are defined, implemented, maintained.34no data
💼 PCI DSS v4.0.1 → 💼 1.3.1 Inbound traffic to the CDE is restricted.65no data
💼 PCI DSS v4.0.1 → 💼 1.3.2 Outbound traffic from the CDE is restricted.65no data
💼 PCI DSS v4.0.1 → 💼 1.4.1 NSCs are implemented between trusted and untrusted networks.19no data
💼 PCI DSS v4.0.1 → 💼 1.4.2 Inbound traffic from untrusted networks to trusted networks is restricted.28no data
💼 PCI DSS v4.0.1 → 💼 1.4.4 System components that store cardholder data are not directly accessible from untrusted networks.15no data
💼 PCI DSS v4.0.1 → 💼 7.3.1 An access control system(s) is in place that restricts access based on a user's need to know and covers all system components.11no data
💼 PCI DSS v4.0 → 💼 1.2.1 Configuration standards for NSC rulesets are defined, implemented, maintained.2434no data
💼 PCI DSS v4.0 → 💼 1.3.1 Inbound traffic to the CDE is restricted.765no data
💼 PCI DSS v4.0 → 💼 1.3.2 Outbound traffic from the CDE is restricted.65no data
💼 PCI DSS v4.0 → 💼 1.4.1 NSCs are implemented between trusted and untrusted networks.719no data
💼 PCI DSS v4.0 → 💼 1.4.2 Inbound traffic from untrusted networks to trusted networks is restricted.728no data
💼 PCI DSS v4.0 → 💼 1.4.4 System components that store cardholder data are not directly accessible from untrusted networks.15no data
💼 PCI DSS v4.0 → 💼 7.3.1 An access control system(s) is in place that restricts access based on a user's need to know and covers all system components.11no data
💼 SOC 2 → 💼 CC6.1-6 Manages Points of Access57no data
💼 SOC 2 → 💼 CC6.6-1 Restricts Access1619no data
💼 UK Cyber Essentials → 💼 1.2 Prevent access to the administrative interface from the internet3638no data