Source URL: https://blog.scottlogic.com/2024/09/23/intro-finos-ccc.html
Source: Scott Logic
Title: Introducing FINOS Common Cloud Controls (CCC)
Feedly Summary: FINOS Common Cloud Controls (CCC) is an open standard by FINOS, to describe consistent controls for compliant public cloud deployments in the financial services sector. The project is supported by Scott Logic, aligning with its mission to promote and support open-source initiatives. This is an effort to introduce FINOS CCC and its goals.
AI Summary and Description: Yes
Summary: The text introduces the FINOS Common Cloud Controls (CCC) project, aiming to establish an open standard for security and compliance measures in public cloud deployments specifically tailored for the financial services sector. It highlights the necessity for consistent controls due to the sensitive nature of financial data and outlines the project’s goals, contributions, and threats related to cloud security.
Detailed Description:
The FINOS CCC project is presented as a collaborative initiative to create an open standard that addresses security and compliance for public cloud services used by financial institutions. This project is crucial given the increasing migration of financial services to the cloud and the unique challenges this poses.
Key Points:
– **Objective**: FINOS CCC aims to create consistent security, compliance, and governance measures across multiple cloud environments specifically for the financial services sector.
– **Open Standard**: The initiative is based on collaborative development and aims to provide guidelines that can be adopted with minimal restrictions.
– **Goals**:
– Define best security practices.
– Establish a target for cloud service providers (CSPs) to conform to.
– Create a shared definition for consistent controls.
– Facilitate common implementation strategies.
– Develop a path towards certification for CSPs.
– **Rationale**: Financial institutions face complex challenges when adopting cloud solutions due to regulatory requirements, data sensitivity, and the need to streamline migration across different cloud vendors. This standardization is essential to mitigate risks and enhance compliance.
– **Risks & Challenges**:
– Data sensitivity and potential data breaches are significant considerations; the shared infrastructure of public clouds poses risks of data leakage.
– Regulatory compliance concerning data residency may hinder cloud adoption, as some regulations require data storage within specific geographical boundaries.
– Migrating from one cloud provider to another can be complicated, particularly if unique native services are tied to the initial provider.
– **Benefits of Cloud Migration**: Despite challenges, moving to the cloud presents multiple advantages:
– Reduced operational costs associated with infrastructure maintenance.
– Enhanced scalability and flexibility with a pay-as-you-go model.
– Improved disaster recovery and business continuity solutions.
– **Project Inception**: The project was proposed by Citi and launched officially by FINOS in July 2023, with significant contributions from major financial institutions and cloud service providers, aiming for a unified approach to cloud services.
– **Framework and Controls**:
– The project utilizes OSCAL (Open Security Controls Assessment Language) for defining controls in a machine-readable format, facilitating automation in compliance documentation.
– It emphasizes mapping threats using the MITRE ATT&CK framework, highlighting understanding of cloud-specific security threats and ensuring that controls are properly validated.
– **Community Engagement**: FINOS CCC is an ongoing open-source initiative that welcomes new contributors and emphasizes collaboration among industry professionals to foster security best practices in public cloud deployments.
In conclusion, the FINOS CCC project plays a significant role in the landscape of cloud security for financial services, offering a structured approach to establish compliance and governance frameworks that can adapt to evolving challenges in the sector. Security and compliance professionals will find this initiative highly relevant as it directly addresses the complexities and needs of secure cloud adoption in finance.