Secrets and secrets management

In the offices where cybersecurity strategies unfold, the talk is less about jargon and more about action. Here, ‘secrets’ are more than just terms; they’re the critical credentials, keys, and APIs that keep businesses running securely. This post is a reality check, a straightforward dive into what secrets management entails — from keys and credentials to APIs and security: no corporate speak, just the essentials of safeguarding your digital treasures.

What is a secret? 

In cybersecurity, ‘secrets’ are the skeleton keys to your empire. In an organization, they manifest in various forms comprising passwords, API keys, and encryption tokens that gatekeep crucial systems and data. 

Eg: test_4eC39HqLy_jWDarjtT1zdp7dc

SysAdmins might hold SSH keys, the encrypted passcodes granting privileged server access. In the finance department, access credentials to banking portals or encrypted links to confidential spreadsheets are considered secrets.

These are not just strings of characters but the lifeblood of secure interactions and transactions in a networked environment. They are calibrated and carefully guarded access points, specific to roles that, if fallen into the wrong hands, can turn the tides against you, opening floodgates to unauthorized access and potential havoc. 

What is secrets management? 

Secrets management is the art and science of keeping these keys under lock and in constant, vigilant motion. This discipline involves an ongoing, dynamic process where secrets are regularly rotated to deter unauthorized use. It requires meticulous auditing and monitoring, creating a trail of access and usage to detect any anomalies or potential breaches swiftly.

Central to this practice is stringent access control, guaranteeing that only the right entities can reach sensitive data under strict policies. This multifaceted approach creates a resilient ecosystem where secrets are continuously shielded yet remain accessible for legitimate operations.

In the best sense, secrets management is supposed to adapt to new threats and shift with technological advances, standing as a vigilant guardian against the ever-present cyber threats. From centralized vaults for secure storage to protocols dictating systematic rotation and real-time monitoring systems alerting to suspicious activities, secrets management embodies a full spectrum of protection. 

Native CloudDifferent secrets management tools 

Here are some of the major players when it comes to discussing different secrets management tools:

AWS Secrets Manager: AWS Secrets Manager is a lifecycle manager for secrets. It actively replaces long-term secrets with short-term ones through automatic secrets rotation, enhancing security posture and integration across AWS services. Its capability to remove hard-coded secrets from applications streamlines management and significantly reduces the risk of exposure and compromise.

Azure Key Vault: Azure Key Vault stands out for its ability to centralize and streamline secrets management. Tightly controlling access to tokens, certificates, and keys minimizes accidental leaks and removes the need for sensitive information in application code.

Google Cloud Platform KMS: GCP KMS provides a comprehensive key management solution, centralizing the control and rotation of encryption keys to protect data across Google Cloud services. GCP KMS doesn’t just secure keys; it makes encrypting and decrypting data a streamlined and secure process integral to your cloud infrastructure.

Kubernetes Secrets: Kubernetes offers several approaches for secrets management, including using etcd as a key-value store for Base64-encoded secrets. While it does safeguard against exposure in application code or pod specifications by encrypting secrets at rest, the default storage of Secrets unencrypted in etcd highlights the need for additional security measures.

Enter Entro

In an arena crowded with secret management tools like the ones listed above, Entro stands out for multiple reasons. First, it offers comprehensive discovery and deep context analysis, revealing what secrets exist and detailed insights into their usage, associated services, and required privileges.

Unlike traditional tools focused mainly on storage, Entro offers rich metadata enrichment and anomaly detection through machine learning, providing a proactive stance against potential threats. Its non-intrusive, out-of-band operation ensures seamless integration without disrupting existing workflows. With the Bring Your Own Vault (BYOV) feature, Entro respects and adapts to the diverse needs of organizations, enhancing and complementing existing tools by filling in gaps around proactive secret security measures. 

This and even more intangibles make Entro an invaluable asset in any robust secrets management strategy.