Securing Credentials with AWS Secrets Manager

Securing Credentials with AWS Secrets Manager for Databases, APIs, and External Services

OneData Software incorporates AWS Secrets Manager as part of its best practices and implementations to protect sensitive credentials such as database passwords, API keys, and external service tokens in its cloud architectures. In projects like ERPONE (manufacturing ERP) and Coolocare (contact center integration), Secrets Manager is used to centralize secret storage, enforce least-privilege access, automate credential management, and avoid insecure practices like embedding secrets in code.

Key Capabilities & Practices

1. Centralized Secret Storage o All sensitive credentials (database connection strings, API keys for external services, etc.) are stored in Secrets Manager rather than in plain text, code, or configuration files. o Secrets are only retrievable via authorized AWS services or roles.

2. Secure Access / IAM Integration o IAM roles, policies are defined so that only specific identities (e.g. EC2 instances, Lambda functions, EKS pods via IAM roles for service accounts, etc.) can retrieve the secrets. o Least-privilege principles enforce who can read/modify secrets.

3. Secret Rotation and Lifecycle Management o Secrets Manager is used to rotate secrets automatically or on schedule where supported (e.g. for database credentials). o Ensures credentials do not expire or become a vulnerability.

4. Avoiding Hardcoded Secrets o Best practice guidance: “Don’t hardcode secrets—use Secrets Manager or environment variables.” o Replacing legacy or insecure practices with robust secrets retrieval at runtime.

5. Integration with Services o Microservices, APIs, external integrations read secrets at runtime from Secrets Manager. o Database connections, API calls are initialized using secrets fetched securely.

6. Audit, Logging, and Monitoring o Use AWS CloudTrail and related logging for Secrets Manager events (retrievals, rotations, creation/deletion). o Monitor for unauthorized attempts, or overly permissive secret access.

7. Compliance & Regulatory Alignment o Handling sensitive credentials securely helps meet security and compliance standards (e.g. for data privacy, healthcare sectors, etc.). o Proper credential management is often required by audits or regulatory frameworks.