Ace Your Practitioner Certified Cybersecurity Associate Exam

A stateless firewall is a network firewall that primarily filters traffic based on source and destination IP address, as well as port numbers and protocols. A stateless firewall does not keep track of the state or context of network connections, and only inspects packet headers. A stateless firewall is faster and simpler than a stateful firewall, but it is less secure and flexible. A stateless firewall cannot block complex attacks or inspect packet contents for malicious payloads. References: What Is a Packet Filtering Firewall? - Palo Alto Networks, Common IP Filtering Techniques – APNIC, What is IP filtering? - Secure Network Traffic Management

An application allow list prevents malware from executing by only permitting approved applications to run on an endpoint. Any unauthorized or unknown software, including malicious programs, is automatically blocked from executing.

 A cloud native security platform (CNSP) is a set of security practices and technologies designed specifically for applications built and deployed in cloud environments. It involves a shift in mindset from traditional security approaches, which often rely on network-based protections, to a more application-focused approach that emphasizes identity and access management, container security and workload security, and continuous monitoring and response. A CNSP offers three main benefits for cloud native applications:

Agility: A CNSP enables faster and more frequent delivery of software updates, as security is built into the application and infrastructure from the ground up, rather than added on as an afterthought. This allows for seamless integration of security controls into the continuous integration/continuous delivery (CI/CD) pipeline, reducing the risk of security gaps or delays. A CNSP also leverages automation and orchestration to simplify and streamline security operations, such as configuration, patching, scanning, and remediation.

Digital transformation: A CNSP supports the adoption of cloud native technologies, such as microservices, containers, serverless, and platform as a service (PaaS), which enable greater scalability, deployability, manageability, and performance of cloud applications. These technologies also allow for more innovation and experimentation, as developers can easily create, test, and deploy new features and functionalities. A CNSP helps to protect these cloud native architectures from threats and vulnerabilities, while also ensuring compliance with regulations and standards.

Flexibility: A CNSP provides consistent and comprehensive security across different cloud environments, such as public, private, and multi-cloud. It also allows for customization and adaptation of security policies and controls to suit the specific needs and preferences of each application and organization. A CNSP can also integrate with other security tools and platforms, such as firewalls, endpoint protection, threat intelligence, and security information and event management (SIEM), to provide a holistic and unified view of the security posture and risk level of cloud applications.

What Is a Cloud Native Security Platform?

What Is Cloud-Native Security?

All You Need to Know About Cloud Native Security

Top Five Benefits of Cloud Native Application Security

One of the best practices for securing sensitive data in SaaS applications is to control the access and usage of data based on the device type. Managed devices are those that are enrolled and monitored by the organization’s IT department, and have security policies and controls applied to them. Unmanaged devices are those that are not under the organization’s control, such as personal laptops or mobile phones. Allowing downloads to managed devices but blocking them from unmanaged devices prevents data leakage and unauthorized access to sensitive data. This can be achieved by using a cloud access security broker (CASB) solution, such as Prisma SaaS from Palo Alto Networks, which can enforce granular policies based on device posture, user identity, and data sensitivity 12. References: 1: Securing SaaS applications on the cloud is a critical aspect of protecting sensitive data and maintaining the trust of customers. By implementing best practices, such as enhanced authentication, data encryption, Break Glass, and oversight, organizations can mitigate the security risks associated with SaaS applications2: Prisma SaaS - Palo Alto Networks