Aqua Cloud Native Application Protection Platform

I used Aqua Cloud Security Platform  for container image scanning, runtime threat detection, infrastructure as code scanning, and software supply chain security.

I used it for container image scanning registries for our Azure  cloud environment and AWS  ECR as well. So it was for Azure Container Registry  scanning and Amazon ECR  scanning.

For Kubernetes  security, I think it is a good feature, including RBAC analysis, privileged containers, host path detection, and pod security. And on the CSPM side as well.

Mostly, I used it for container scanning and our CI/CD pipeline scanning. So mostly, on the CSPM side.

We deployed it in a hybrid environment. We also have both AWS  cloud and Azure  cloud. So it is a hybrid deployment.

The best features I can identify are container image scanning, Kubernetes  security, runtime protection, CSPM, infrastructure as code security, and supply chain security as well.

Not specifically cost saving, but from the security side, we completed our compliance standards, and in our CI/CD pipeline, we set up our security gates between the planning, build, and code phases.

I think Aqua Cloud Security Platform  has a good, strong platform, but there are still other areas. For example, if we compare it with Prisma Cloud or Wiz , I can see that with the initial deployment, in the deployment phase, they need to create a more user-friendly interface. Also, the cloud context visualization is an area for improvement. Aqua Cloud Security Platform is focusing heavily on workloads and runtime security, but it offers less intuitive visualization of cloud relationships compared to Wiz  and Prisma Cloud.

I think for the licensing part and AI-driven prioritization, this needs improvement. While Aqua Cloud Security Platform prioritizes findings using CVSS and policy context, if we compare it with Wiz and Prisma Cloud, they are increasingly using AI-driven risk scoring that incorporates exploitability, identity exposure, internet reachability, and business context.

Regarding AI-driven activities, I think there is still a need for them to think about, or implement, or enhance their LLM models so they can prioritize the CVSS or policy context scoring based on AI-driven methodologies.

I think the licensing complexity and agent dependency are areas for improvement. Many runtime protection capabilities rely on deploying Aqua enforcers and Aqua agents. So, organizations that prefer completely agentless security for operational simplicity may find this less attractive than platforms like Wiz or Orca Security , which emphasize agentless assessment for many use cases. Also, the licensing can become difficult to estimate for large environments with many clusters, workloads, and cloud accounts, making cost forecasting less straightforward than for some competitors.

I used Aqua Cloud Security Platform in my previous job for around three years.

Aqua Cloud Security Platform is stable as of now.

Platform scalability is fantastic and its enterprise solution is really amazing.

Customer support is acceptable. Sometimes we receive a complaint from our L3 or L2 engineers that they are not getting proper on-time support, but overall, it is acceptable.

Previously, we were using multiple tools for scanning: container image scanning, Kubernetes security, runtime security, CSPM and on the IAC side. We were using multiple scanning tools for that. Then we found one single solution, which is Aqua Cloud Security Platform. So it really added value for our organization.

We were previously using a lot of open-source tools. Open-source tools have their limitations and there is no vendor support. Then we did a lot of analysis with multiple paid solutions and came to know that Aqua Cloud Security Platform is the best from our environment's perspective.

The main trend is for deployment complexity, so we still have to use multiple resources for that. But after deploying it in the CI/CD pipeline, it enhances our CI/CD or automation capability for the organization. So the DevSecOps  capacity or DevSecOps  integration is good. And the supply chain security is also fantastic. Container security, Kubernetes security, runtime protection, everything is fantastic.

I think the licensing part and the cost part are as per the market standard, but it again depends on your budget and what services you are looking for. So, overall, it is good. Not too high, not too low. It is easy for organizations.

We went through Wiz, Prisma, and Orca  as well.

My advice would be that if someone is looking for runtime protection, Kubernetes security, container security, IAC security, and supply chain security for their organization, then I think Aqua Cloud Security Platform is fantastic. But if they are looking for agentless assessment, attack path analysis, and ease of deployment, then they can look at other vendors. I would rate this product seven out of ten.

My main use case for Aqua Cloud Security Platform  is to check mostly cloud security posture management.

A specific example of how I check cloud security posture with Aqua Cloud Security Platform  is that we were basically tasked with making sure to do daily checks to ensure there were no critical vulnerabilities or anything within the environment itself of our client. If there was, we found any new vulnerabilities or CVEs that popped up and notified the client, then looked through their environment to see if anything was found.

That covers my main use case with Aqua Cloud Security Platform.

The best features Aqua Cloud Security Platform offers include a good way for checking vulnerabilities within the cloud of our client's cloud infrastructure.

Regarding how Aqua Cloud Security Platform helps with checking vulnerabilities, they had some vulnerability dashboards for going into each vulnerability that was found in order to find out which specific cloud assets were impacted. Mostly it was for the cloud security posture management side of things.

Aqua Cloud Security Platform has positively impacted my organization by helping with decreasing the number of compliancy issues with the company that we were working on. We used it to help them figure out what CVEs or cloud security posture management issues that they should be taking care of first and helped show which issues were most concerning and work our way through the most critical ones.

Prioritizing those issues with Aqua Cloud Security Platform certainly helped reduce the risks that they were impacting their environment. It helps save a little bit of time for determining which aspects the client needed to focus on first before moving on to lower priority tasks.

Regarding the features of Aqua Cloud Security Platform, the GUI itself would sometimes be a little slow, but other than that, I liked everything else.

Regarding how Aqua Cloud Security Platform can be improved, I wish it had better application speeds and responsiveness. When I used it on the client that I had a few years ago, we ran into some issues where it would not load properly. Those issues might have been fixed by now.

I have been using Aqua Cloud Security Platform for roughly a year, give or take. This was back when I was working at IBM. We were using it for one of our clients.

When I used Aqua Cloud Security Platform several years ago, it was fairly reliable with some stability issues.

Aqua Cloud Security Platform did not seem to have any issues with scaling. That being said, when we were working for our client, there was not really a whole lot of growth. There was a little bit but not a large amount, but it did seem to work fine.

I believe I only had one or two tickets open with customer support while I was working on Aqua Cloud Security Platform and everything seemed fine and quick.

On a scale of one to ten, I would rate the customer support for Aqua Cloud Security Platform a ten out of ten.

I did not use any previous solution with this client. I am pretty sure this client always had Aqua security.

There was definitely some time saved with Aqua Cloud Security Platform. The ability to quickly go through and find out what needed to be done allowed us to quickly put reports together to present to the client.

I did not evaluate any other options for this client. It was just for Aqua Cloud Security Platform.

I rate Aqua Cloud Security Platform a seven out of ten.

I chose a seven for Aqua Cloud Security Platform because it is very useful. It allows us to be very convenient. However, there were some issues such as the responsiveness of the GUI and some glitches a few times.

When I had used Aqua Cloud Security Platform last, they did not really have much in the way of AI capabilities, but it really did have some good governance and security features.

I never really had to do much with the AI capabilities of Aqua Cloud Security Platform. I never really messed with it as I had used it several years ago.

I would advise others looking into using Aqua Cloud Security Platform to check around at other platforms as well and compare to see what your needs are compared to what everything else offers.

I do not have any additional thoughts about Aqua Cloud Security Platform before we wrap up.

Aqua Cloud Security Platform 's main use case is scanning for vulnerabilities and detecting vulnerabilities, which allows me to manage our CIS benchmark as well.

I use Aqua Cloud Security Platform  for vulnerability scanning, particularly with the open-source tool called Trivy , which helps identify bugs in Docker  images. I only need to install that software into the system and run a couple of commands. Based on those inputs, it analyzes the image package and provides suggestions on the vulnerabilities, how to fix them, the consequences, and the pros and cons. I also use Kube-bench with Aqua Cloud Security Platform to scan Kubernetes  clusters for vulnerabilities, bugs, and issues at the cluster levels. Once I run the Kube-bench commands at the cluster levels, it provides detailed information on what exactly needs to be taken care of, what should be removed if an unnecessary package is present, or if something unnecessary has been allowed, such as permissions for all users. It provides all the essential information on exactly what needs to be done.

As I mentioned, I used Aqua Cloud Security Platform with Trivy , which is a great lightweight open-source tool, and Kube-bench, which follows CIS benchmarks, making it an industrial standard that can be implemented in test, UAT, production, or development environments. This use case can be integrated into CI/CD pipelines, automating tasks, generating reports, and sharing those reports with development teams for reviewing and rectifying issues, bugs, or vulnerabilities.

Aqua Cloud Security Platform offers several features, including code and supply chain security for scanning vulnerabilities, where it is a lightweight and fast scanning tool for lightweight images and serverless functions. Additionally, it provides cloud and infrastructure posture management, continuously monitoring cloud assets and infrastructure configuration to ensure compliance with organizational standards. There is also advanced runtime protection, known as ARP or CWPP , for real-time threat detection, addressing issues such as agent failures. Lastly, there are AI and generative security features involving machine learning, along with many additional security features, but these are the main ones I can identify.

As a cloud engineer and DevOps engineer, my day-to-day tasks mostly involve cloud interactions with cloud service providers. In this context, cloud security posture management scans public cloud environments such as AWS , Azure , and GCP , detecting misconfigurations. If storage, such as buckets, is exposed in public environments, it alerts me to take necessary actions. Kubernetes  security posture management leverages Kube-bench and CIS benchmarks for continuous audits of Kubernetes clusters, control planes, and node configurations against the CIS benchmark. If something is missing, it alerts me and guides me on how to rectify it.

Aqua Cloud Security Platform has positively impacted my organization with a drastic reduction in vulnerability search time. Manual processes consume more time and lower productivity, but using Aqua Cloud Security Platform increases productivity and reduces time spent searching or identifying vulnerabilities. It also accelerates DevSecOps  principles, automating the checks developers need without waiting for manual security sign-offs. Prior to Aqua Cloud Security Platform, development teams blamed security teams and vice versa, but Aqua Cloud Security Platform has bridged that gap, reducing tension between the two teams.

Since adopting Aqua Cloud Security Platform, I have observed around a 40 to 45 percent increase in productivity and a reduction of around 35 to 40 percent in time taken for tasks that previously required manual intervention, such as Python linting. Before, I performed manual checks line by line, but now Aqua Cloud Security Platform automates these processes, generates reports, and allows me to take immediate action.

One additional feature of Aqua Cloud Security Platform is cloud infrastructure entitlement management, which tracks human and machine identities across cloud platforms while discovering privileged accounts, unused permissions, and potential threats. It escalates alerts if something poses a real threat to the organization.

Aqua Cloud Security Platform could improve by streamlining the onboarding process and initial policy tuning to reduce the feeling of exhaustion or fatigue. Additionally, enhancing the user interface would be beneficial as tools such as Trivy scanner and Kube-bench typically operate on CLI. A user interface that integrates smoothly with CI/CD pipelines and Kubernetes clusters would be a significant improvement. Also, reporting could be clearer and more actionable, rather than presenting a massive list of open issues, which could overwhelm busy development or testing teams. Advanced documentation for enterprise-level users would also enhance the platform, making it accessible for startups or mid-sized organizations with limited budgets.

Improving the user interface would provide better visibility, especially for newcomers trying to understand Aqua Cloud Security Platform. If new users find it easier to integrate with CI/CD pipelines or Kubernetes clusters through a more straightforward interface, that would be a significant achievement.

I have been using Aqua Cloud Security Platform for around three to four years.

I take off those two points because it lacks sufficient open-source documentation; it is primarily available at the enterprise level, which could hinder users who want to learn about Aqua Cloud Security Platform without enterprise access. My overall review rating for this product is 8 out of 10.