CompTIA Cloud Essentials+ (CLO-002)Cloud ConceptsHard
A company operating in a highly regulated industry stores sensitive customer data in the cloud. They need to understand who is primarily responsible for patching the guest operating system of their virtual machines and encrypting the data at rest within their application. According to the shared responsibility model, who is responsible for these tasks in an IaaS environment?
- AThe customer is responsible for both patching the OS and data encryption.
- BThe cloud provider is responsible for patching the OS, and the customer is responsible for data encryption.
- CThe cloud provider is responsible for both patching the OS and data encryption.
- DThe customer is responsible for patching the OS, and the cloud provider is responsible for data encryption.
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: A. The customer is responsible for both patching the OS and data encryption.
In an IaaS model, the customer is responsible for the operating system (including patching) and everything above it, including application data and its encryption. The cloud provider is responsible for the underlying physical infrastructure and its security.
Why the other options are wrong
- B. Incorrect. The customer manages the guest OS, not the provider.
- C. Incorrect. The customer is responsible for the guest OS and data in IaaS.
- D. Incorrect. The customer is responsible for their data's encryption, while the provider secures the underlying physical infrastructure, not necessarily the customer's data encryption within their application.
Shared Responsibility Model (IaaS)
A framework outlining the security and compliance responsibilities of both the cloud provider and the customer in a cloud computing environment. In IaaS, the customer has significant responsibility for the operating system and above.
- Provider: 'Security *of* the Cloud' (physical infrastructure, virtualization).
- Customer: 'Security *in* the Cloud' (OS, applications, data, network configuration).
- Responsibility shifts based on service model (IaaS, PaaS, SaaS).
Memory trick: IaaS: They secure the base, you secure your space.