Secure Application Deployment

[Applicable to all providers (CSP, MP, OSP, AP) except AIC]
1. Define Deployment Strategy Scope: Establish provider-specific strategies for secure, standardized, and compliant application deployment as outlined in the provider-specific sections below. Ensure strategies cover the entire deployment lifecycle, including build, testing, staging, and production phases, with a focus on automation to reduce human error and ensure consistency.

2. Deployment Governance Structure: Establish clear roles and responsibilities for overseeing secure deployment processes, involving cross-functional teams (e.g., DevOps, security, compliance) and governance bodies. Define approval workflows that include senior management, security architects, and compliance officers to ensure deployments align with organizational security and regulatory requirements.

3. Deployment Documentation Standards: Define structured documentation standards for deployment processes, including configuration management, automation scripts, and compliance checklists. Use consistent templates to document deployment workflows, security controls, and rollback procedures to ensure traceability and auditability.

4. Deployment Management Framework: Implement a structured review and update process for deployment strategies. Conduct reviews at least annually or following significant changes (e.g., new deployment tools, infrastructure updates, or regulatory changes). Ensure alignment with relevant standards (e.g., NIST 800-53, ISO 27001, CIS Controls) and AI-specific frameworks like NIST AI Risk Management Framework. Automate policy enforcement where possible using CI/CD pipelines and configuration management tools.

5. Communication and Training Standards: Define requirements for communicating deployment strategies, including formal distribution of process documentation, mandatory training for DevOps and security teams, and awareness programs for stakeholders. Ensure deployment policies and automation tools are accessible via internal portals and that teams are trained on secure deployment practices and compliance requirements.

6. Quality Control and Automation Standards: Define policies for quality assurance of deployment processes, including automated security scanning, infrastructure-as-code (IaC) validation, and compliance checks within CI/CD pipelines. Implement automated testing (e.g., unit, integration, security tests) and monitoring to ensure deployments meet security and performance standards. Establish rollback mechanisms to address deployment failures securely.

1. Review Secure Service Catalog and Templates: CSPs must offer “secure-by-default” building blocks (e.g., hardened images, encrypted storage). Examine infrastructure templates or service catalog entries for built-in security controls.

2. Inspect Customer-Facing Deployment APIs: Test APIs for rate-limiting, versioning, and authentication enforcement. Review security regression test results.

3. Evaluate Enforcement of Configuration Policies: Customers rely on CSP tools like config or policy-as-code to stay compliant. Review automated controls for compliance (e.g., CIS benchmarks) and check audit logs for remediation actions.

4. Check Third-Party Offering Vetting: AI software marketplaces or container registries may host vulnerable or unverified runtimes. Inspect the vetting process for containers, models, or functions published to customers.

5. Validate Disaster Recovery Readiness: CSP outages can impact thousands of AI systems and deployment continuity is essential. Request DR test records, review automated failover procedures, and examine data replication configurations.

From CCM:
1. Examine policy and procedures for implementation of application deployment.
2. Determine if segregation of duties (role and responsibilities) is clearly defined among security and application teams.
3. Determine if an identification and integration process is defined and verified for application deployment processes.
4. Evaluate the extent of automation deployed and the criteria used.