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SEC488: Cloud Security Essentials

SEC488Cloud Security
  • 6 Days (Instructor-Led)
  • 36 Hours (Self-Paced)
Course created by:
Ryan Nicholson
Ryan Nicholson
Register NowCourse Preview
SEC488: Cloud Security Essentials
Course created by:
Ryan Nicholson
Ryan Nicholson
Register NowCourse Preview
  • GIAC Cloud Security Essentials

    Learn about certification

  • 36 CPEs

    Apply your credits to renew your certifications

  • In-Person, Virtual or Self-Paced

    Attend a live, instructor-led class at a location near you or remotely, or train on your time over 4 months

  • Essential Skill Level

    Course material is for individuals with an understanding of IT or cyber security concepts

  • 40 Hands-On Lab(s)

    Apply what you learn with hands-on exercises and labs

Jump to:

Learn how to build a secure cloud foundation for your org while maintaining regulatory compliance. Grasp key security issues such as configuring AWS & Azure environments to protect sensitive data.

Featured Quote

I learned a lot, went deeper technically than I expected to, and feel like this was absolutely a great use of my time. The instructors and TAs are top notch and made my experience taking this course a very positive one.
Marni ReemerAWS

Course Overview

SEC488: Cloud Security Essentials prepares you to tackle real-world cloud security challenges with practical, hands-on training in live AWS and Azure environments. This course equips you to secure cloud accounts, protect sensitive data, implement Identity and Access Management (IAM), and mitigate risks during cloud migrations. With 40 immersive labs and a Capture the Flag event, you'll gain the skills to safeguard your organization's assets, maintain compliance, and build a strong security foundation in the cloud.

What You’ll Learn

  • Identify cloud security weaknesses and risks in CSP offerings.
  • Navigate challenges and choose effective cloud security controls.
  • Protect sensitive data and ensure accountability with cloud logging.
  • Assess CSP trustworthiness using documentation and audits.
  • Secure management access and deploy native network controls.
  • Perform penetration testing and leverage top CSP services.
  • Communicate cloud security concepts with teams and leadership.

Business Takeaways

  • Minimize Your Cloud Risk: Proactively secure your cloud environments to significantly reduce vulnerabilities.
  • Safeguard Computational Resources: Ensure your budget remains intact by protecting your computing power.
  • Enhance Compliance: Elevate your cloud security compliance to meet and exceed regulatory standards.
  • Boost Efficiency: Leverage automation to streamline operations and enhance overall productivity.
  • Strengthen Workforce Retention: Enhance organizational security, leading to increased employee satisfaction and retention.
  • Protect Brand Reputation: Maintain and enhance your organization's brand by securing your cloud operations.
  • Build Customer Trust: Increase customer confidence with robust and reliable cloud security measures.

Meet Your Author

Ryan Nicholson
Ryan Nicholson

Ryan Nicholson

Senior Instructor

Ryan’s extensive experience, including roles as a cybersecurity engineer for major Department of Defense cloud projects and as a lead auditor, underscores his dedication to enhancing the security posture of critical systems.

Read more about Ryan Nicholson

Course Syllabus

Explore the course syllabus below to view the full range of topics covered in SEC488: Cloud Security Essentials.

Section 1Identity and Access Management (IAM)

The first section of this cloud security course focuses on IAM. Students will quickly understand IAM's critical role in protecting cloud accounts.

Topics covered

  • Cloud Accounts and Groups
  • Policies and Permissions
  • Identity Guardrails
  • Temporary Credentials and Secrets Management

Labs

  • User inventory and configurations
  • Adventures in least privilege
  • Application credentials
  • Metadata services

Section 2Compute and Configuration Management

The second section will cover ways to protect the compute elements in cloud providers' Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) and Platform as a Service (PaaS) offerings.

Topics covered

  • Secure Instance/Virtual Machine Deployment
  • Host Configuration and Image Management
  • Application Security
  • Threat Modeling

Labs

  • Secure VM Deployment
  • Automated Image Build
  • Which Reality?
  • Infrastructure as Code Analysis

Section 3Data Protection

The third section will first focus on the protection of data in cloud environments. All too often, we are reading news articles about breaches that, very frequently, come down to a misconfiguration of a cloud service.

Topics covered

  • Legal and Contractual Concerns
  • Cloud Storage
  • Availability
  • Data Hunting

Labs

  • Public Storage Blunders
  • Sensitive Data Hunting
  • Data in Transit Encryption
  • Cloud Data Lifecycle Management

Section 4Networking and Detection

Section 4 is where many network security analysts, engineers, and architects will begin salivating as they will do a deep dive into the ins and outs of cloud networking and log generation, collection, and analysis to set themselves up for success to defend their IaaS workloads.

Topics covered

  • Public Cloud Networking
  • Remote Management of IaaS Systems
  • Segmentation
  • Network Protection Services

Labs

  • Restricting Network Access
  • Web Application Firewall (WAF)
  • Cloud Services Logging
  • IaaS Logging

Section 5Compliance, Incident Response, and Penetration Testing

In the fifth section, we'll dive headfirst into compliance frameworks, audit reports, privacy, and eDiscovery to equip you with the information and references to ensure that the right questions are being asked during CSP risk assessments.

Topics covered

  • Cloud Inventory
  • Security Assurance and Cloud Auditing
  • Privacy and Risk Management
  • CASBs, CSPMs, and CWPPs

Labs

  • Windows Process Exploration
  • Windows Filesystem Permissions
  • Applying Windows System Security Policies
  • Using PowerShell for Speed and Scale

Section 6Capture the Flag: CloudWars

This final section of this cloud security training course consists of a multi-hour, CloudWars competition to reinforce the topics covered in books 1-5.

Things You Need To Know

Relevant Job Roles

Systems Developer (DCWF 632)

DoD 8140: Cyber IT

Oversees full lifecycle of information systems from design through evaluation, ensuring alignment with functional and operational goals.

Explore learning path

Cloud Security Analyst

Cloud Security

Using cloud security solutions to respond to incidents and enable defenses

Explore learning path

Cybersecurity Architecture (OPM 652)

NICE: Design and Development

Responsible for ensuring that security requirements are adequately addressed in all aspects of enterprise architecture, including reference models, segment and solution architectures, and the resulting systems that protect and support organizational mission and business processes.

Explore learning path

Cloud Security Manager

Cloud Security

Developing cloud security roadmaps, plans and procurement models that define policy and procedure

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Systems Security Management (OPM 722)

NICE: Oversight and Governance

Responsible for managing the cybersecurity of a program, organization, system, or enclave.

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Communications Security (COMSEC) Management (OPM 723)

NICE: Oversight and Governance

Responsible for managing the Communications Security (COMSEC) resources of an organization.

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Cyber Defense Infrastructure Support Specialist (DCWF 521)

DoD 8140: Cybersecurity

Deploys, configures, maintains infrastructure software and hardware to support secure and effective IT operations across organizational systems.

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Network Operations Specialist (DCWF 441)

DoD 8140: Cyber IT

Implements and maintains network services, including hardware and virtual systems, ensuring operational support for infrastructure platforms.

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Cloud Security Architect

Cloud Security

Designing the adoption of cloud services and define the tools and strategy for cloud solutions

Explore learning path

Data Architect (DCWF 653)

DoD 8140: Data/AI

Designs system data models and flow architectures to meet mission or business data requirements using scalable and efficient solutions.

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Systems Security Analysis (OPM 461)

NICE: Implementation and Operation

Responsible for developing and analyzing the integration, testing, operations, and maintenance of systems security. Prepares, performs, and manages the security aspects of implementing and operating a system.

Explore learning path

Security Architect (DCWF 652)

DoD 8140: Cybersecurity

Designs secure enterprise systems considering environmental constraints and translates them into enforceable security processes and protocols.

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Enterprise Architect (DCWF 651)

DoD 8140: Cyber IT

Develops business and IT process architectures, creating baseline and target architectures to meet mission or enterprise goals.

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Software/Cloud Architect (DCWF 628)

DoD 8140: Software Engineering

Defines technical system specs including cloud strategy and software integration to meet business or mission-aligned system requirements.

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Research & Development Specialist (DCWF 661)

DoD 8140: Cyber IT

Conducts research in systems/software engineering to develop capabilities and identify vulnerabilities, with security integrated throughout.

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Secure Software Assessor (DCWF 622)

DoD 8140: Cybersecurity

Analyzes new or existing software applications for security issues and provides actionable insights to improve protection and performance.

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Course Schedule & Pricing

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OnDemand Course Access

When purchasing a live instructor-led class, add an additional 4 months of online access after your course. View pricing in the info icons below.

Filter by:
  • Location & instructor

    Virtual (OnDemand)

    Instructed by Ryan Nicholson
    Date & Time
    OnDemand (Anytime)Self-Paced, 4 months access
    Course price
    $8,780 USD*Prices exclude applicable local taxes
    Enrollment options
    Self-Paced
  • Location & instructor

    Washington, DC, US & Virtual (live)

    Instructed by Serge Borso
    Date & Time
    Fetching schedule..View event details
    Course price
    $8,780 USD*Prices exclude applicable local taxes
    Enrollment options
    In-PersonVirtual
  • Location & instructor

    Virginia Beach, VA, US & Virtual (live)

    Instructed by Chris Edmundson
    Date & Time
    Fetching schedule..View event details
    Course price
    $8,780 USD*Prices exclude applicable local taxes
    Enrollment options
    In-PersonVirtual
  • Location & instructor

    Virginia Beach, VA, US & Virtual (live)

    Instructed by Chris Edmundson
    Date & Time
    Fetching schedule..View event details
    Course price
    $8,780 USD*Prices exclude applicable local taxes
    Enrollment options
    In-Person
  • Location & instructor

    Las Vegas, NV, US & Virtual (live)

    Instructed by Ryan Nicholson
    Date & Time
    Fetching schedule..View event details
    Course price
    $8,780 USD*Prices exclude applicable local taxes
    Enrollment options
    In-PersonVirtual
  • Location & instructor

    Denver, CO, US & Virtual (live)

    Date & Time
    Fetching schedule..View event details
    Course price
    $8,780 USD*Prices exclude applicable local taxes
    Enrollment options
    In-PersonVirtual
  • Location & instructor

    Amsterdam, NL & Virtual (live)

    Instructed by Jason Larkin
    Date & Time
    Fetching schedule..View event details
    Course price
    €8,230 EUR*Prices exclude applicable local taxes
    Enrollment options
    In-PersonVirtual
  • Location & instructor

    Orlando, FL, US & Virtual (live)

    Date & Time
    Fetching schedule..View event details
    Course price
    $8,780 USD*Prices exclude applicable local taxes
    Enrollment options
    In-PersonVirtual
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