4 ms·

AWS isn't monolithic internally and we use permissions boundaries between systems like S3 and KMS (in fact they are mediated by IAM). There's some more detail i

AWS isn't monolithic internally and we use permissions boundaries between systems like S3 and KMS (in fact they are mediated by IAM). There's some more detail in my talk from re:Invent - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNbNWxVQP4w https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNbNWxVQP4w . For a case like this, the upshot of it is that with permissions on the KMS key, S3 is effectively locked out and can't fetch it. KMS is a hermetic system with no operator access with HSMs at its root, so that provides a pretty meaningful difference. It also means that controls can be handled by different customer teams, and that a single change on a shared CMK can render an unbounded number of S3 objects inaccessible quickly.

theteapot 4y ago
Useful. Thanks. > KMS is a hermetic system with no operator access with HSMs at its root, so that provides a pretty meaningful difference. So, if I don't use a CMK (Customer Managed Key), what am I getting instead? Assumed (perhaps naively) KMS would still be used under the hood. > a single change on a shared CMK can render an unbounded number of S3 objects inaccessible quickly. I feel like you could achieve that with an IAM policy. I guess the key can apply to a wide range of unrelated AWS services so act like a ~meta policy.
- colmmacc 4y ago
  If you use the default AWS managed key rather than a CMK, it's largely the same levels of protection and the main difference is that you don't control the rotation schedule of the top-level key. And yep, a CMK can span many services and still give you a single point of control. But compliance is still the major thing. Many regulators, auditors and compliance authorities are just happier with KMS being the point of control. Even though AWS operates KMS, and the services, KMS is a neat compartmentalized hermetic system with HSMs at its root. So it's quicker and neater to evaluate its surface area, TCB, and so on and it's a familiar pattern to finance and health regulators especially.
- aborsy 4y ago
  Default keys don’t allow policies if I recall. No access control.
  - paranoidrobot 4y ago
    You can't set a Key policy, but you control access via the IAM Policy associated with the caller.

theteapot 4y ago

Useful. Thanks. > KMS is a hermetic system with no operator access with HSMs at its root, so that provides a pretty meaningful difference. So, if I don't use a CMK (Customer Managed Key), what am I getting instead? Assumed (perhaps naively) KMS would still be used under the hood. > a single change on a shared CMK can render an unbounded number of S3 objects inaccessible quickly. I feel like you could achieve that with an IAM policy. I guess the key can apply to a wide range of unrelated AWS services so act like a ~meta policy.

colmmacc 4y ago
If you use the default AWS managed key rather than a CMK, it's largely the same levels of protection and the main difference is that you don't control the rotation schedule of the top-level key. And yep, a CMK can span many services and still give you a single point of control. But compliance is still the major thing. Many regulators, auditors and compliance authorities are just happier with KMS being the point of control. Even though AWS operates KMS, and the services, KMS is a neat compartmentalized hermetic system with HSMs at its root. So it's quicker and neater to evaluate its surface area, TCB, and so on and it's a familiar pattern to finance and health regulators especially.
aborsy 4y ago
Default keys don’t allow policies if I recall. No access control.
- paranoidrobot 4y ago
  You can't set a Key policy, but you control access via the IAM Policy associated with the caller.