Hack and Defend AWS EKS Clusters

About This Training

Hack and Defend AWS EKS Clusters using OWASP EKS Goat is a hands-on workshop focused on real-world AWS EKS security. Participants will learn to identify and exploit common misconfigurations, simulate attacks, and apply effective defenses using opensource tools and best practices.

This workshop follows a structured, lab-driven approach—from understanding Docker and container internals, exploring AWS ECR and IAM misconfigurations, to simulating attacks and deploying defense strategies. Participants will learn how to exploit cloud misconfigurations, perform supply chain attack in CICD pipeline, backdooring ECR image, credentials exfiltration via IMDSv2, pod to node breakout, and finally securing AWS EKS environment using GuardDuty, open-source Kyverno and Tetragon.

This lab uses open source OWASP EKS Goat, enabling attendees to simulate adversary techniques starting from deployment and reinforce Kubernetes security hardening practices in production-grade AWS EKS environments.

Training Format

Lectures

30% of the training

Diagrammatic & example based approach

Hands-on Labs

70% of the training

Around 22 labs, 10-20 minutes each

Who Should Take This Course

Security Researchers & Professionals: Those looking to delve deep into the world of Kubernetes vulnerabilities, from discovery to exploitation.
Developers & DevOps Experts: For those who architect and deploy Kubernetes, and need to understand its attack vectors and defense strategies.
DevSecOps Practitioners: Integrating security into DevOps is crucial. Grasp the nuances of Kubernetes security to elevate your organization's defense posture.
Pentesters & Cloud Engineers: Master techniques to test the resilience of Kubernetes deployments and understand common misconfigurations.
Red Teams and Blue Teams: Experience both the offensive techniques to exploit Kubernetes and the defensive measures to protect it.
Beginners in Kubernetes Security: Start your journey with a comprehensive understanding of the threatscape in the Kubernetes ecosystem.

Student Requirements

Participants must bring their own AWS account with billing enabled and admin privileges.
GitHub account to use GitHub Codespace to set credentials and deploy infrastructure for learning.
Laptop with Firefox browser & a minimum of 4GB RAM and 2 CPU cores.
Firefox browser installed, specifically for Windows environments.
Access to wireless internet connectivity for online activities and lab exercises.
For Participants using Windows & Mac: administrative privileges and endpoint security, antivirus, and VPN functionalities turned off.

Divyanshu Shukla

Senior Security Engineer

Senior security engineer with more than seven years of experience in Cloud Security, Kubernetes Security, DevSecOps, Web Application Pentesting, and Threat Modelling. Currently co-lead of OWASP EKS Goat, and reported multiple vulnerabilities to companies like Airbnb, Google, Microsoft.

Anjali Singh Shukla

Senior Security Engineer

Anjali Shukla is a seasoned cloud security engineer with over six years of experience in DevSecOps, Kubernetes security (EKS/GKE) as well as AWS, Azure, GCP security. She is the founder of Kubernetes Village, a community dedicated to enhancing Kubernetes security.