Threat Modeling
Architecture & DesignThreat Modeling is a proactive security practice where you systematically identify threats, vulnerabilities, and attack vectors for your architecture before (or as) you build it.
Common Frameworks
- STRIDE: Spoofing, Tampering, Repudiation, Information Disclosure, Denial of Service, Elevation of Privilege
- PASTA: Process for Attack Simulation and Threat Analysis (7-step risk-centric approach)
- AWS Threat Composer: free AWS tool for creating threat models based on your architecture
AWS-Specific Threats
- Overprivileged IAM roles enabling lateral movement
- Public S3 buckets or security groups exposing data/services
- Cross-account trust relationships being abused
- Credential exposure through metadata service (IMDSv1)
- Supply chain attacks through third-party Lambda layers or container images
Process
- Define what you're building (architecture diagram)
- Identify threats (what could go wrong)
- Assess risk (likelihood × impact)
- Design mitigations (security controls)
- Validate (penetration testing, red team)
Related Terms
A security strategy using multiple layers of controls (network, identity, data, application) so that if one layer fails, others still protect the environment.
A security model where no user, device, or network is trusted by default - every access request is verified regardless of location, using identity-based policies and continuous validation.
The scope of impact when a security incident occurs - how many resources, accounts, or users are affected. Smaller blast radius means better security posture.
A set of best practices organized into six pillars (including Security) that help architects build secure, reliable, efficient, and cost-effective cloud workloads.
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