Sold by: Madarson IT
Deployed on AWS
AWS Free Tier
This product has charges associated with it for PCI DSS security hardening. Madarson IT pre-hardened SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 AMI with PCI DSS security controls applied out of the box, ready for regulated workloads requiring PCI DSS compliance on AWS EC2.
Overview
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Madarson IT PCI DSS Hardened Image
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Pre-Hardened VM Images for AWS, Azure, and GCP
Madarson IT SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 - Hardened for PCI DSS Compliance
This is a repackaged software product. Additional charges apply for PCI DSS security hardening applied to the base SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 image.
This pre-hardened AMI delivers SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 with security configurations aligned to PCI DSS best practices, enabling organizations that process, store, or transmit payment card data to launch compliance-ready EC2 instances without manual hardening effort.
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 has achieved EAL 4+ certification for IBM Z, Arm, and x86-64 architectures. Madarson IT builds on this foundation with additional hardening measures designed to address PCI DSS requirements out of the box.
What Is Included
- Pre-configured audit logging (auditd) to support PCI DSS Requirement 10 (track and monitor access)
- Key-only SSH authentication enforced - password-based login disabled
- Unnecessary services and packages removed to minimize attack surface
- Kernel parameters tuned for network security hardening
- Firewall rules pre-configured to restrict inbound and outbound traffic
- File integrity monitoring baseline established
PCI DSS Requirements Addressed
This image helps organizations address multiple PCI DSS requirements including:
- Requirement 2 - Do not use vendor-supplied defaults for system passwords and security parameters
- Requirement 5 - Protect systems against malware
- Requirement 6 - Develop and maintain secure systems
- Requirement 8 - Identify and authenticate access to system components
- Requirement 10 - Track and monitor all access to network resources and cardholder data environments
AWS Integration
This hardened AMI is designed to work within your existing AWS compliance toolchain:
- AWS CloudTrail - API-level audit logging complements the OS-level auditd configuration
- Amazon CloudWatch - Forward system logs and security events for centralized monitoring and alerting
- AWS Systems Manager - Manage patching and configuration compliance at scale across fleets
- AWS Config - Continuously assess instance configuration against compliance rules
Deployment Scenario
An e-commerce company running payment processing services on AWS needs every EC2 instance in its auto-scaling group to boot in a PCI DSS-compliant state. Rather than spending hours manually hardening each instance, the team launches this pre-hardened AMI. New instances automatically pass internal compliance scans, reducing time-to-audit-readiness from days to minutes and ensuring consistent security posture across the fleet.
Why Madarson IT
Madarson IT certified images are built to work right out of the box with current security patches applied, industry-standard hardening configurations, and documentation to support your compliance journey.
Important Notes
- This AMI includes additional charges for PCI DSS security hardening beyond standard infrastructure costs
- Hardening helps address PCI DSS requirements but does not replace a Qualified Security Assessor (QSA) evaluation
- Buyers are responsible for completing their full PCI DSS assessment scope including network segmentation, application security, and organizational policies
- SUSE and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server are registered trademarks of SUSE LLC. Madarson IT does not provide commercial licenses for SUSE products
Highlights
- Pre-configured PCI DSS hardening controls including enforced key-only SSH authentication, auditd logging for access monitoring, disabled unnecessary services, tuned kernel security parameters, and pre-set firewall rules. Launches in a compliance-ready state so organizations can reduce manual hardening effort from days to minutes and maintain consistent security posture across auto-scaling groups.
- Integrates with AWS compliance toolchain including CloudTrail for API audit logging, Amazon CloudWatch for centralized security event monitoring, AWS Systems Manager for fleet patch management, and AWS Config for continuous configuration compliance assessment. Designed to fit into existing PCI DSS workflows without additional tooling overhead.
- Addresses multiple PCI DSS requirements out of the box including Requirement 2 (no vendor defaults), Requirement 8 (authentication controls), and Requirement 10 (access tracking and monitoring). Built on SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 which has achieved EAL 4+ certification, providing a trusted foundation for regulated environments.
Details
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Delivery method
Delivery option
64-bit (x86) Amazon Machine Image (AMI)
Latest version
Operating system
Suse 15
Deployed on AWS
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Pricing
Pricing is based on actual usage, with charges varying according to how much you consume. Subscriptions have no end date and may be canceled any time.
Additional AWS infrastructure costs may apply. Use the AWS Pricing Calculator to estimate your infrastructure costs.
If you are an AWS Free Tier customer with a free plan, you are eligible to subscribe to this offer. You can use free credits to cover the cost of eligible AWS infrastructure. See AWS Free Tier for more details. If you created an AWS account before July 15th, 2025, and qualify for the Legacy AWS Free Tier, Amazon EC2 charges for Micro instances are free for up to 750 hours per month. See Legacy AWS Free Tier for more details.
Dimension | Cost/hour |
|---|---|
m5a.large Recommended | $0.05 |
t3.micro | $0.05 |
t2.micro | $0.025 |
c6a.large | $0.05 |
c6a.8xlarge | $0.80 |
g5.8xlarge | $0.80 |
t3a.small | $0.05 |
m8a.xlarge | $0.10 |
m7a.12xlarge | $1.20 |
c5.4xlarge | $0.40 |
Dimensions summary
You pay by the hour for this security-hardened SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 image, billed per running instance. Pricing is not tiered by features. Instead, each dimension maps to a specific AWS EC2 instance type, so your rate scales with the compute size you choose. Options span general-purpose, compute-optimized, memory-optimized, storage-optimized, and GPU-accelerated families across many sizes, from small to very large. Larger instances carry higher hourly rates. You select the instance that fits your workload, and the software charge applies on top of standard AWS infrastructure costs for that instance.
Top-of-mind questions for buyers
The software charge meters running instance-hours only. A fully stopped instance does not accrue the hourly software fee. You may still pay standard AWS storage costs for the attached volumes while the instance is stopped. Software charges resume when you start the instance again.
One unit is one running EC2 instance of the type you select, billed per hour. The rate reflects that instance size. The fee covers the security-hardened SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 image, configured for PCI-DSS controls. It applies on top of the underlying AWS compute cost for that instance.
Each instance type maps to its own hourly rate. Switching to a larger type applies that type's rate for the hours it runs. The change is not automatic; you select a new instance and launch the image on it. You pay each type's rate only while that instance runs.
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Delivery details
64-bit (x86) Amazon Machine Image (AMI)
Amazon Machine Image (AMI)
An AMI is a virtual image that provides the information required to launch an instance. Amazon EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud) instances are virtual servers on which you can run your applications and workloads, offering varying combinations of CPU, memory, storage, and networking resources. You can launch as many instances from as many different AMIs as you need.
Version release notes
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 15 - Hardened for PCI DSS Compliance
Additional details
Usage instructions
Allow inbound SSH access in your security group (TCP port 22) To connect to your instance using the Amazon EC2 console: Open the Amazon EC2 console at https://console.aws.amazon.com/ec2/ . In the navigation pane, choose Instances. Select the instance and choose Connect. Choose the EC2 Instance Connect tab. For Connection type, choose Connect using EC2 Instance Connect. Access the ec2 with the default username: "ec2-user"
Resources
Vendor resources
Support
Vendor support
Madarson IT Support
For questions about this PCI DSS hardened AMI - including hardening configuration, compliance guidance, deployment assistance, or troubleshooting - contact the Madarson IT team at info@madarsonit.com .
Please include your AWS account ID and instance ID when reporting issues to help expedite resolution.
For private offers, compliance documentation requests, or custom hardening requirements, reach out via email and the team will coordinate next steps.
AWS infrastructure support
AWS Support is a one-on-one, fast-response support channel that is staffed 24x7x365 with experienced and technical support engineers. The service helps customers of all sizes and technical abilities to successfully utilize the products and features provided by Amazon Web Services.
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