Your First AWS Account (3/3) - Secure It

(Part 3 of 3 - see previous post if you missed it)

Once you have created a new account with Amazon Web Services, it's vital that you secure it properly.  The most important steps are setting up Security Challenge Questions, configuring Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) for the root user, and then creating one or more IAM users with which to sign in with (to eliminate the need to sign in as the root user).

Your First AWS Account (2/3) - Configure It

(Part 2 of 3 - see previous post if you missed it)

Once you've created a new account with Amazon Web Services, you will want to configure it properly.  I'll briefly cover the basics like contacts, billing, and security preferences.

Your First AWS Account (1/3) - Create It

OK, now it's time for the fun stuff!  Owning an account with Amazon Web Services is an amazing thing.  As an individual, having these kinds of computing resources available at your fingertips would have been unimaginable just a few years ago.

Getting Ready for AWS Securely (4/4) - Wrapping Up

(Part 4 of 4 - see previous post if you missed it)

The AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) system is how you can create additional users for your account that have adjustable privileges.  Even if you did want to sign in to your account as a user that can do everything, you should still create an IAM user for which to sign in with to do that work, as the more a given password is used, the greater the chance that somehow it will be accidentally exposed.  But, thankfully, an IAM user, even with full administrative privileges, can still be ultimately disabled by the root user, which is your last line of defense.

Getting Ready for AWS Securely (3/4) - Multiple Factor Authentication

(Part 3 of 4 - see previous post if you missed it)

As an additional mechanism to keep your account secure, AWS offers Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA).  Using this is a necessity, not only for your root user, but also for any IAM users that have administrative privileges on your account.

Getting Ready for AWS Securely (2/4) - Passwords

(Part 2 of 4 - see previous post if you missed it)

The overall security of your AWS account requires a super strong root password.  (When considering Password Strength, the quick answer is that "longer is better"; adding length is far more important than sprinkling in special characters.)

Getting Ready for AWS Securely (1/4) - Your Account

(Part 1 of 4)

Although Amazon Web Services (AWS) make it really easy to jump in and get started, there are a few things worth thinking about before diving in head-first, especially in regards to the security of your account.

Welcome

Welcome to my blog!

I've been using Amazon Web Services professionally for several years.  Up to now, however, I had not gotten around to playing around with it on my own time - primarily because I had more than enough opportunity to explore the landscape while at work.

But limiting my AWS exposure to what I could justifiably do in my day job left some areas unturned (e.g., cloud services not in use by my employer, activities performed by other team members, etc.).  So, it's as good a time as any to broaden those horizons - and, it's a great excuse to start a blog while I'm at it!