TrustStack: Enabling Sensitive Workloads in the Public Cloud with Prevention-First Security and Builder Agility

TrustStack is a prevention-first cybersecurity framework that enables highly regulated organizations, government agencies, and defense units to securely run sensitive workloads in AWS commercial regions. Built on AWS Identity Services and Landing Zone Accelerator best practices, TrustStack combines military-grade standards with developer agility, ensuring sensitive workloads are protected without compromising innovation or speed.

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About TrustStack

Prevention-First Philosophy

Detection isn't enough. Traditional security models react to threats after they occur, which is insufficient for mission-critical applications and sensitive data. TrustStack puts prevention at the forefront, embedding robust guardrails and prescriptive controls directly into your cloud environment to block unauthorized actions before they happen.

• Proactive Security: Eliminates vulnerabilities before exploitation.
• Agility Retained: Developers maintain velocity and flexibility while security is enforced automatically.

Why Prevention Matters

Sensitive workloads in government, defense, and regulated industries face catastrophic risk from even a single breach. Relying solely on detection introduces unacceptable risk by allowing threats to materialize before countermeasures are deployed. TrustStack flips this paradigm:

• Prevention at the Source: Blocks unauthorized actions before they occur, reducing reliance on incident response or forensic analysis.
• Developer-First: Pre-built constructs enforce security policies without slowing down deployment cycles.

Key Differentiators

• Prevention-First, Detection as Backup: Robust prevention layer minimizes attack surfaces and eliminates vulnerabilities before exploitation. Detection mechanisms provide monitoring and alerting as a secondary defense.

• Guardrails-Aware CDK Construct Library: Developers deploy applications securely within a "walled garden," focusing on innovation while TrustStack enforces security policies in the background.

• Prescriptive Data Perimeter: Organization-wide data perimeters ensure only trusted identities access resources from approved networks, supporting regulatory compliance and operational efficiency.

• Generative AI for Developer Productivity: AI-driven environment accelerates productivity, automates repetitive tasks, and provides guardrails-aware coding suggestions—without compromising security.

• End-to-End Detective Controls: Advanced monitoring delivers real-time threat detection and alerting, enabling seamless risk mitigation across cloud environments.

• Pre-Provisioned Incident Response: Ready-to-use incident response environment with NIST-based frameworks, SIEM integration, and automated playbooks for rapid breach response.

• AWS-Native Integration: Implementation based on AWS Identity Services data perimeter guidance and Landing Zone Accelerator frameworks ensures seamless integration and alignment with AWS security best practices.

How TrustStack Works

Prescriptive Data Perimeter Implementation

TrustStack delivers a comprehensive data perimeter implementation based on AWS Identity Services best practices, including Service Control Policies (SCP), Resource Control Policies (RCP), VPC endpoint policies, and automated remediation controls. Our implementation follows the established patterns and guidance from AWS's data perimeter policy examples, ensuring alignment with proven security frameworks while being tailored to industry-specific requirements.

Service-Specific Security Patterns: TrustStack incorporates service-specific data perimeter considerations for critical AWS services, implementing the security patterns documented in AWS's comprehensive policy examples repository. This ensures that each service integration maintains appropriate security boundaries while supporting operational requirements.

Technical Foundation & Standards Alignment

AWS Security Framework Implementation

TrustStack's data perimeter controls are built upon AWS's established security patterns and policy examples. Our implementation leverages:

• Identity Perimeter Controls: Ensuring only trusted identities access resources, based on AWS Identity Services guidance
• Resource Perimeter Controls: Restricting access to trusted resources using established AWS patterns
• Network Perimeter Controls: Implementing expected network access patterns following AWS best practices
• Service-Specific Adaptations: Tailored implementations for individual AWS services based on documented security considerations

Guardrails-Aware Infrastructure as Code

• CDK Constructs & Terraform Modules: Embed prevention-first security principles directly into development workflows, automatically enforcing security policies based on environment context provided by TrustStack's metadata service.
• Policy-Aware Development: CDK constructs and Terraform modules that automatically implement data perimeter patterns based on AWS service-specific guidance
• Workload Blueprints: Pre-approved, end-to-end application architectures for rapid, secure deployment.
• Automated Environment Discovery: The metadata service eliminates manual coordination, enabling self-service security and consistent policy enforcement.

Developer Experience

• GitFlow-Enabled Workflow: Familiar, code-first development experience with automated security guardrails.
• Portal Flexibility: Integrates with any Internal Developer Portal (Backstage, Humanitec, custom).
• Multi-Environment Promotion: Automated pipelines ensure consistent security posture across development, staging, and production.
• Composition-Based Development: Multiple abstraction levels support both granular resource management and comprehensive application blueprints.
• Compliance Automation: Built-in validation against established AWS security patterns ensures consistent policy application

Incident Response & Asset Management

• NIST-Based IR Framework: Out-of-the-box SIEM integration, automated enrichment datasets, and full asset management for rapid incident response.
• Configuration Management Database (CMDB): Real-time asset inventory, relationship mapping, and tagging strategies for rapid impact assessment and targeted remediation.
• Automated Deployment Reporting: Instantly identifies affected workloads and owners for immediate, targeted responses to vulnerabilities.

Compliance & Security Standards

AWS Best Practices Integration

TrustStack's security controls are designed to complement and extend AWS's documented security patterns:

• Data Perimeter Alignment: Implementation follows the comprehensive policy examples and service-specific guidance established by AWS Identity Services
• Regulatory Compliance: Framework supports compliance requirements while maintaining alignment with AWS security best practices
• Continuous Updates: Security patterns evolve with AWS service updates and emerging security guidance

Who Benefits from TrustStack?

• Regulated Enterprises: Ensure secure handling of sensitive data in finance, healthcare, and critical infrastructure.
• Defense Units: Leverage military-grade encryption and rapid deployment templates for mission-critical scenarios.
• Developers: Access a generative AI-powered environment that enhances productivity while maintaining strict security guardrails.