1.3.1. 💡 First Principle: Shared Responsibility: AWS's Role
AWS is responsible for "security of the cloud," protecting the underlying network infrastructure: hardware, software, and physical facilities that deliver network services.
Scenario: You are a network specialist designing a VPC for a company. You're concerned about the physical security of the network hardware in the AWS data centers and the underlying connectivity between Availability Zones.
In the AWS Shared Responsibility Model, AWS's responsibility is to protect the global network infrastructure that runs all of the services offered in the AWS Cloud. This "security of the cloud" means AWS manages and controls the network hardware, software, and physical security of the data centers where network devices reside.
Key AWS Responsibilities ("Security of the Cloud") for Networking:
- Physical Network Hardware: Routers, switches, and firewalls that AWS owns and operates.
- Global Network Backbone: The underlying network infrastructure connecting AWS Regions, Availability Zones, and Edge Locations.
- Virtualization Layer: The hypervisor that separates customer VPCs and network resources.
- Managed Network Services Infrastructure: The underlying compute, storage, and networking for services like Elastic Load Balancing (ELB), AWS Transit Gateway (TGW), AWS Direct Connect endpoints, AWS Network Firewall, AWS WAF, and AWS Shield. This includes patching and security configuration of these underlying hosts.
⚠️ Common Pitfall: Assuming AWS is responsible for all security. While AWS secures the underlying infrastructure, the customer is responsible for configuring security within their AWS environment.
Key Trade-Offs:
- AWS Control vs. Customer Visibility: AWS manages the underlying network, providing high availability and security, but customers have limited visibility into the physical network components.
Reflection Question: How does AWS's "security of the cloud" responsibility, by managing the underlying network infrastructure and physical security of its global data centers, enable you as a Network Specialist to focus on designing and configuring your network within the cloud rather than the physical network layer?