Enhancing Zero-Trust Security in Kubernetes : Bridging the Gap in Runtime Threat Detection and Automated Response

Sammanfattning

The widespread adoption of Kubernetes for modern application deployment introduces significant security challenges within dynamic, cloud-native environments, as traditional perimeter-based defences are insufficient. A critical gap exists in achieving effective real-time runtime threat detection and fully automated responses. Current policy enforcement methods often rely on static analysis, leaving a vulnerability window during application execution that allows threats to propagate rapidly and requires manual intervention for remediation. This master’s thesis addresses this by proposing and demonstrating a Proof of Concept (PoC) to enhance Zero Trust security in Kubernetes. The PoC integrates real-time security monitoring, advanced policy enforcement (including the use of Otterize), and automated remediation workflows. The research investigates how runtime threats can be detected accurately, how efficient automated remediation can be implemented, and how these tools can be seamlessly integrated. The empirical results demonstrate a significant enhancement in Zero-Trust security posture, enabling rapid threat mitigation and substantially reducing the attack surface in dynamic containerized environments. This contribution aims to advance the development of more resilient security solutions, that benefit organizations, particularly those with stringent data privacy requirements.