Securing Kubernetes Clusters

Warning:

This lab has been outdated and split into a set of smaller labs covering the topics in an easier-to-consume format.

• Securing Kubernetes Clusters using Authentication and Authorization
• Using Security Contexts to Secure Kubernetes Clusters

Lab Overview

There are many facets to security in Kubernetes. One small oversight can leave your cluster vulnerable to leaking sensitive data, running foreign workloads, and a host of other attacks. This Lab shows you how to practice defense in depth in Kubernetes by covering the main security concepts including authentication, authorization, network policies, security contexts, and secrets. Examples of potential exploits from improperly configured clusters are also illustrated followed by guidance on how to prevent the attacks.

This Lab is valuable to anyone working with Kubernetes, but the content has been prepared considering topics described in the Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) Exam Curriculum. Completion of the Lab will help you get hands-on experience, which is essential for passing the CKA exam.

 

Lab Objectives

Upon completion of this Lab you will be able to:

• Understand Kubernetes' authentication model
• Create users and groups in Kubernetes and use role-based access control for authorization
• Configure network policies to control pod communication
• Use pod and container security contexts to harden your environments
• Securely store sensitive information using Kubernetes secrets

Lab Prerequisites

You should be familiar with:

• Working with Kubernetes to deploy applications
• Working at the command line in Linux
• Public Key Infrastructure (PKI), particularly using OpenSSL to generate keys and certificates

The following Labs can be used to fulfill the prerequisites: Deploy a Stateless Application in a Kubernetes Cluster, Deploy a Stateful Application in a Kubernetes Cluster, and Best Practices for Deploying SSL/TLS.

Updates

October 19th, 2022 - Updated to run Kubernetes 1.24

March 8th, 2022 - Resolved an issue causing an environment error

October 23rd, 2021 - Resolved an issue causing the Kubernetes cluster to fail to create

October 20th, 2021 - Updated lab to use EC2 Instance Connect

August 31st, 2020 - Updated lab for the new EC2 user interface

January 10th, 2019 - Added a validation Lab Step to check the work you perform in the Lab