What is AWS Penetration Testing? A Complete Guide

Cloud computing has transformed how businesses operate, with organizations rapidly migrating to cloud infrastructure offered by providers like Amazon Web Services (AWS). While AWS offers robust security measures, the shift to cloud environments brings in new vulnerabilities and risks that organizations must address. Unlike traditional on-premises infrastructure, cloud security operates under the Shared Responsibility Model, which means AWS secures the cloud infrastructure, but customers are responsible for securing their applications, data, and configurations.

In this blog, let’s walk through the complete process of AWS penetration testing. Whether you are new to cloud pentesting or an experienced security professional, this guide will provide actionable insights to help you conduct a thorough security assessment of your AWS infrastructure.

What is AWS Penetration Testing?

AWS Penetration Testing is the practice of ethically hacking an organization's AWS cloud infrastructure to identify security vulnerabilities before malicious attackers exploit them. Unlike traditional network penetration testing, AWS pentesting requires a specialized approach due to the cloud’s unique architecture, security models, and service configurations.

Why is AWS Penetration Testing Important?

You might wonder, "Isn't AWS secure enough?" While AWS offers a robust and secure platform, the way you configure and use AWS services plays a significant role in your overall security posture. Here's why pentesting is crucial:

• Identifying Misconfigurations: Missteps like leaving an S3 bucket publicly accessible can expose sensitive data. Pentesting helps spot these errors.
• Ensuring Compliance: Industries have regulations (like HIPAA, PCI-DSS) that require regular security assessments. Pentesting assists in meeting these standards.
• Proactive Defense: By identifying vulnerabilities before malicious actors do, you can patch them promptly, reducing the risk of breaches.

Who Should Perform AWS Penetration Testing?

By understanding AWS security models and testing methodologies, organizations can proactively defend against cyber threats. AWS pentesting is essential for:

• Cloud security teams seeking to protect AWS environments.
• Compliance auditors ensuring organizations meet regulatory requirements.
• DevOps and security engineers responsible for securing AWS deployments.
• Ethical hackers and red teams simulating cyberattacks on cloud infrastructures.

How is AWS Pentesting Different from Traditional Pentesting?

While traditional penetration testing focuses on on-premise infrastructure like servers, routers, and firewalls, AWS pentesting involves cloud-native elements such as:

• AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM): Evaluating roles, permissions, and access controls.
• Cloud Storage (S3, EBS, RDS): Identifying misconfigured storage resources.
• Serverless Environments (Lambda, API Gateway): Testing serverless applications for security flaws.
• Virtual Machines (EC2): Assessing the security of cloud-hosted servers.

Understanding the Shared Responsibility Model

Before diving deeper into AWS penetration testing, it’s crucial to understand the AWS Shared Responsibility Model. Unlike traditional on-premises security, where organizations control everything from physical hardware to application security, AWS divides security responsibilities between AWS itself and its customers.

What is the AWS Shared Responsibility Model?

AWS is responsible for securing the underlying cloud infrastructure, including physical servers, storage, networking, and data centers. The customer is responsible for securing anything they deploy in the cloud, such as applications, configurations, and data.

Breaking Down the Shared Responsibility Model

AWS Penetration Testing Policies and Permissions

AWS provides strict guidelines on what penetration testing activities are allowed and what requires prior approval. Since AWS manages the underlying infrastructure, certain types of security testing could disrupt cloud services or violate AWS policies.

AWS-Approved Penetration Testing Activities

AWS allows penetration testing without prior approval for specific services and testing techniques. These tests focus on customer-controlled resources, meaning you cannot test AWS infrastructure itself.

AWS Services That Can Be Tested Without Approval

AWS permits security testing for the following services:

AWS Penetration Testing That Requires Prior Approval

Some security tests require explicit AWS approval before conducting them. These are tests that may impact AWS infrastructure or affect other AWS customers.

How to Request Approval?

• Submit a request via the AWS Vulnerability Reporting page.
• AWS will review and approve testing activities based on potential risk factors.

AWS Security Testing Restrictions (Strictly Prohibited Activities)

Some penetration testing activities are completely forbidden because they can damage AWS infrastructure or affect other customers.

If an organization violates AWS penetration testing policies, AWS can suspend the account or take legal action.

Preparing for an AWS Penetration Test

Before conducting an AWS penetration test, it’s essential to properly plan and configure the environment. Unlike traditional network pentesting, AWS security assessments require cloud-specific considerations, including IAM policies, logging configurations, and compliance requirements. Here is a simple breakdown for you to follow,

1. Defining Scope and Objectives

A well-defined scope ensures the pentest focuses on high-risk areas without violating AWS policies. Organizations should identify:

What should be tested?

• Cloud resources: EC2 instances, S3 buckets, RDS databases, Lambda functions.
• IAM configurations: Role-based access controls, privilege escalation risks.
• Networking setup: VPC, security groups, firewall rules.
• Application vulnerabilities: Web apps, APIs, serverless functions.

2. . Gaining Necessary Permissions

Since AWS penetration testing involves simulating attacks, pentesters must have explicit authorization.

Who Needs to Approve?

• Cloud Security Team: Ensures testing does not impact operations.
• Legal/Compliance Team: Reviews the scope to meet regulatory standards.
• AWS (if needed): Approval for restricted tests (e.g., DoS simulations).

How to Get Permission?

• Submit a formal request to AWS security (AWS Vulnerability Reporting) if needed.
• Obtain a written authorization letter from the organization’s security team

3. Setting Up a Testing Environment

Instead of testing directly in production, a sandbox environment should be created.

Recommended Setup:

• Create a separate AWS account for testing.
• Deploy replicas of production services (EC2, S3, RDS, etc.).
• Use sample data instead of real customer data.

Example AWS CLI Commands for Setting Up a Test EC2 Instance with minimal risk.

aws ec2 run-instances --image-id ami-0abcdef1234567890 \
  --count 1 --instance-type t2.micro \
  --key-name MyKeyPair --security-groups my-security-group

4. Enabling Logging and Monitoring

To track penetration testing activities and detect suspicious behavior, AWS logging should be enabled.

Key AWS Services for Logging:

5. Understanding Compliance and Legal Aspects

AWS penetration testing must align with security frameworks and regulatory requirements, such as:

• GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation) – Protects personal data.
• HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) – Ensures healthcare data security.
• PCI-DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) – Secures payment transactions.

Methodology for AWS Penetration Testing

A structured penetration testing methodology ensures that all security vulnerabilities in an AWS environment are systematically identified, analyzed, and mitigated. In this section, we will break down a step-by-step approach to conducting AWS penetration testing.

1. Reconnaissance (Information Gathering)

The first step in AWS penetration testing is gathering publicly available information about the target AWS environment. This includes:

• Identifying exposed cloud assets (e.g., public S3 buckets, APIs, EC2 instances).
• Extracting metadata from misconfigured AWS services.
• Searching for leaked AWS credentials on GitHub, Pastebin, and other repositories.

2. Enumeration and Asset Discovery

Once reconnaissance is complete, pentesters move to enumerating AWS services, users, roles, and permissions. Enumeration helps identify weak IAM policies, publicly exposed resources, and potential entry points.

Key AWS Services to Enumerate

• IAM Roles & Policies (Check for over-permissive policies).
• S3 Buckets (Check for public access and weak permissions).
• EC2 Instances (Identify running services and potential attack vectors).
• Lambda Functions (Analyze insecure function permissions and execution context).

3. Exploitation and Privilege Escalation

After identifying weak configurations, pentesters attempt to exploit misconfigurations and gain elevated access. Common exploitation scenarios include,

A. Exploiting Overly Permissive IAM Roles

Misconfigured IAM roles may allow an attacker to assume a high-privilege role using sts:AssumeRole. Example: Assuming a High-Privilege Role

aws sts assume-role --role-arn "arn:aws:iam::123456789012:role/AdminRole" \
  --role-session-name pentest-session

If successful, the attacker can execute administrative actions in AWS.

B. Exploiting Publicly Accessible S3 Buckets

Publicly accessible S3 buckets can expose sensitive data. Example: Checking for Public S3 Bucket Permissions

aws s3api get-bucket-acl --bucket my-target-bucket

If All Users or Authenticated Users have READ or WRITE access, the bucket is vulnerable.

4. Post-Exploitation and Lateral Movement

After gaining access to a compromised AWS environment, the next step is lateral movement—expanding access by compromising additional services.

Techniques for Lateral Movement in AWS

• Stealing EC2 Instance Metadata to obtain temporary credentials.
• Accessing Lambda environment variables for stored secrets.
• Compromising RDS databases to extract stored information.

5. Data Exfiltration and Persistence Testing

After compromising AWS resources, attackers may attempt to exfiltrate sensitive data or establish persistence for long-term access.

Common Data Exfiltration Techniques

• Dumping RDS database contents to an external server.
• Copying confidential files from S3 buckets.
• Exfiltrating AWS Secrets Manager keys.

6. Cleanup

Once testing is complete, pentesters must clean up all traces to avoid disrupting the AWS environment.

Steps to Ensure Proper Cleanup

• Remove any created AWS users, roles, and policies.
• Terminate any temporary EC2 instances used for testing.
• Delete logs of testing activities (if required by policy).

Reporting and Remediation Strategies

After the previous stages have been executed, it's time to compile a report detailing the findings. Detail each identified issue, provide evidence, and potential impacts, and propose remediation strategies. Highlight high-risk ratings and prioritize them. Finalize the report by summarizing the overall state of AWS security. Ensure all findings are communicated clearly and objectively, focusing on aiding the client in understanding the risks and remediation steps.

Remember, vigilant, thorough, and ongoing inspections and assessments are key to maintaining a secure cloud environment. These steps provide a solid base but should be further customized based on the organization's needs and the AWS environment’s complexity.

Structure of a Penetration Testing Report

• Executive Summary – A non-technical overview for management.
• Scope and Methodology – Define tested AWS services, tools used, and methodologies.
• Findings & Impact – List vulnerabilities, their severity (Critical, High, Medium, Low), and their potential impact.
• Proof of Concept (PoC) – Screenshots, logs, or exploit demonstrations to support findings.
• Remediation Recommendations – Step-by-step instructions to fix vulnerabilities.

Effective Remediation Strategies

• IAM Hardening – Implement least privilege access and regularly review permissions.
• S3 Security – Ensure buckets aren't public and enforce encryption at rest and in transit.
• CloudTrail & Logging – Enable detailed logging to monitor for suspicious activity.
• Key Management – Rotate AWS API keys, implement multi-factor authentication (MFA), and use AWS Secrets Manager.

Tools and Techniques for AWS Penetration Testing

AWS penetration testing requires a mix of manual assessment and automated tools to uncover security weaknesses. Below are some of the essential tools,

Reconnaissance & Enumeration

• AWS CLI & AWS IAM Authenticator – Enumerate IAM roles, policies, and permissions.
• Pacu – AWS exploitation framework for privilege escalation and attack simulation.
• CloudMapper – Visualizes AWS environments and identifies security misconfigurations.

Credential and Access Testing

• TruffleHog – Scans repositories for exposed AWS credentials.
• PMapper – Analyzes IAM role relationships and privileges.

Exploitation & Privilege Escalation

• S3Scanner – Detects misconfigured or publicly exposed S3 buckets.
• LambdaLoot – Exploits misconfigured AWS Lambda permissions.
• EC2 Metadata Service Exploits – Extracts credentials via SSRF attacks.

Post-Exploitation & Logging Analysis

• CloudTrail Analysis – Monitors logs for unusual AWS API activities.
• GuardDuty & Security Hub – Detects malicious activity and anomalies in AWS environments.

Challenges and Considerations in AWS Penetration Testing

While AWS pentesting is crucial for security, it comes with unique challenges compared to traditional infrastructure testing. Here’s what you need to consider:

• AWS Pentesting Restrictions

AWS imposes strict policies on penetration testing. While customers can test their own environments, attacking AWS infrastructure itself is prohibited. Unauthorized testing may violate AWS terms of service, leading to account suspension.

• Shared Responsibility Model

AWS handles physical and network security, but misconfigurations on the customer’s end remain their responsibility. This means pentesters must focus on IAM roles, storage misconfigurations, exposed APIs, and network access controls rather than AWS-managed infrastructure.

• Complexity of AWS Environments

AWS is highly dynamic and scalable, making it harder to pinpoint vulnerabilities. Serverless applications, containerized workloads, and multi-account setups add complexity to testing efforts.

• Logging and Detection

AWS has extensive logging capabilities (CloudTrail, GuardDuty, VPC Flow Logs), which can trigger security alerts during testing. Pentesters need to coordinate with security teams to ensure testing activities are identified correctly and do not cause unnecessary alarms.

• Cost Considerations

Certain AWS pentesting activities consume resources (e.g., spinning up test instances, running large-scale scans) which may incur unexpected costs. Organizations should carefully monitor usage and optimize tests to avoid billing surprises.

How Uproot Security Helps with AWS Penetration Testing

• Uproot Security provides comprehensive AWS penetration testing services to help businesses identify, assess, and remediate cloud security risks. Here’s how Uproot Security makes a difference,

• Cloud-Specific Testing Expertise – Specialized testing methodologies tailored for AWS environments, covering IAM security, API security, misconfigurations, and privilege escalation risks.

• Automated & Manual Assessments – A combination of automated vulnerability scanning and in-depth manual penetration testing to uncover hidden security flaws.

• Detailed Reporting & Actionable Insights – Clear, risk-prioritized reports with proof-of-concept exploits, impact analysis, and remediation guidance.

• Continuous Security Monitoring – Beyond penetration testing, Uproot Security helps businesses continuously monitor AWS environments for security threats.

Conclusion

Conducting penetration tests and cloud audits are both essential for securing cloud environments. The reason for this is that the issues found in pentesting the internal network of a client application hosted in AWS may not be identified when conducting an audit that checks for misconfigurations. As the company grows and more resources are added to the cloud, these tests need to be conducted frequently.

Compliance & Regulatory Support – Ensures adherence to AWS security best practices and compliance with frameworks like ISO 27001, SOC 2, PCI-DSS, and HIPAA.