Overview
Attacks that target cloud infrastructure and accounts to manipulate or exploit resources. Cloud jacking refers to attacks where attackers gain unauthorized access to cloud accounts, allowing them to control or manipulate cloud resources. Cloud jacking can enable lateral movement across connected systems or accounts within a cloud environment. Attackers can gain access to cloud accounts through compromised credentials, weak access controls, or exploiting cloud vulnerabilities. More specific attack attack methods include misconfigured cloud storage (e.g., S3 buckets) or social engineering. Once attackers gain access to a cloud account, they can steal data, inject malicious code, or misuse resources (e.g., for cryptojacking). For mobile applications, cloud jacking can lead to the exposure of sensitive data, disruption of app services, or manipulation of cloud-hosted environments.
Risk factors
Cloud jacking attacks may arise from:
- Weak passwords, reused passwords, or phishing attacks can lead to compromised cloud account credentials.
- Failure to implement MFA increases the risk of cloud accounts being compromised through brute-force attacks or credential stuffing.
- Granting excessive permissions to cloud users or services can increase the attack surface.
- Vulnerabilities in cloud services or applications that are not regularly updated or patched can be exploited by attackers.
Consequences
If an attacker successfully conducts a cloud jacking attack, the following could happen:
- Data theft: Attackers can access and steal sensitive data stored in the compromised cloud environment, including user information and proprietary business data.
- Service disruption: Attackers may disrupt cloud-based services or modify app functionality, leading to downtime or degraded app performance.
- Malware injection: Attackers can inject malicious code into cloud-hosted applications, which can be distributed to users or used to infect other systems.
- Cryptojacking: Attackers may misuse cloud resources for illicit activities such as cryptojacking, where they hijack cloud resources to mine cryptocurrency.
Solutions and best practices
To mitigate the risks associated with cloud jacking attacks, organizations should implement the following security measures:
- Use strong authentication: Implement strong authentication methods, including multi-factor authentication (MFA), for cloud accounts to protect against credential theft.
- Limit permissions: Follow the principle of least privilege by limiting the permissions of users and services to only what is necessary for their functions.
- Monitor cloud activity: Continuously monitor cloud activity and set up alerts for suspicious or unauthorized actions.
- App shielding: App shielding can help secure communication between mobile apps and cloud services, as well as detect unauthorized access attempts.
- Security tools: Use cloud-native security tools (e.g., AWS GuardDuty, Azure Defender) to enhance monitoring and threat detection.