As India continues to rise high on technological advancement with digitization takin over businesses operations more than ever. The recently published guidelines by CERT-In (effective from 25th of July 2025), quite appropriately attributes to the overall expectation of public cloud services market to grow at CAGR of 24.3% for 2023-28. In fact, cloud adoption in India has surged by 54% in 2024 alone (Source: Statista). These new guidelines defines a complete cyber security audit (Version 1.0, 25.07.2025) to be carried out to redefine how organizations/businesses must secure their digital operations. In this blog, we will be covering the aspects of cloud security being covered within the guidelines under the purview of security audit. The guidelines places special emphasis on securing cloud environments Non-compliance now risks operational suspension or debarment from government contracts (Section 19). For the organizations who are heavily reliant on public clouds, the rules redefine risk management to prioritize proactive controls over reactive fixes.
Core Cloud Security Requirements in 2025 CERT-In Guidelines
The latest cyber security audit guidelines released by CERT-In re-emphasizes on five pivotal mandates for cloud environments. The are the following-
1. Annual Cloud Security Testing
Where you can find? Page 16. Section 6. Point xviii
Evaluation and assessment of security configurations, measures, and vulnerabilities of cloud-based environments, applications, and infrastructures.
2. 180-Days Log Retention
Where you can find? Page 17. Section 6. Point xxi. Log Management and Maintenance Audit
Carrying out assessments to evaluate the completeness and effectiveness of cloud-based systems by generation, retaining, and monitoring of logs. This evaluation should be done as per the organizational policies, which in turn should be incorporated by aligning with regulatory requirements to ensure detection, investigation, and response.
3. CSA CCM Framework Adoption
Where you can find? Page 22. Section 8. Point ii. CSA Cloud Control Matrix
CSA CCM is a cloud security standard that consists of 197 control objects across 17 domains, which helps in assessment and guidance for implementation. This framework is formidable to adapt different cloud service models.
4. Least Privilege Enforcement
Where you can find? Page 28. Section 9.6. Point iv. Asset Management and Infrastructure Security
The organizations should enforce the practice of least privilege across certain cyber assets, which translates to minimum level of access given to systems, users, processes, and applications. This ensures that only necessary access is provided to perform specific role and function. It is one of the prominent security control to prevent exploitation and security breach.
5. Vendor Risk Assessments
Where you can find? Page 17. Section 6. Point xxiv. Asset Management and Infrastructure Security
The organizations must carry out assessment of cybersecurity practices for vendors and third-party to identify and prevent supply chain risks and ensure enforcement of security policies.
Also Read: Cloud Security Best Practices for 2025
Alignment of Cloud Security Audit with the Help of Cy5’s Ion
Cy5’s ion cloud security platforms comes with modules and components that helps organizations to achieve compliance in accordance to these new guidelines for carrying out cloud security audit under the purview of cyber security audit policy.
| Cloud Tool | Section in CERT-In New Guideline Policy Document | Key Compliance Function |
| CSPM | 8.ii, 6.xviii | Continuous misconfiguration monitoring via CSA CCM |
| KSPM | 6.xviii, 9.6.iii | Container/Kubernetes policy enforcement |
| SIEM | 6.xxi, 5 | 180-day log retention for incident analysis |
| CIEM | 9.6.iv, 6.xxiv | Identity governance & third-party access control |
Essential Compliance Insight
CERT-In mandates CSA CCM as the baseline for cloud configurations (Section 8.ii). CSPM tools automate this alignment, scanning for deviations like exposed storage buckets or non-compliant network rules—key for annual audit evidence (6.xviii).
Cy5’s Cloud Security Tools Mapped to CERT-In Requirements
Following are the list of modules/components available in Cy5’s ion Cloud Security platform that helps leading organizations like Physics Wallah, Bharti Airtel, IND Money, Zupee, Hero Vired, Eureka Forbes, etc., to secure their multi-cloud environments. These modules will not only help in security your cloud infrastructure but will also help the organizations in getting CERT-in compliant as per these new cyber security audit guidelines.
CSPM: Your Cloud Configuration Firewall
CSPM (Cloud Security Posture Management) continuously validates settings against CSA CCM benchmarks (Section 8.ii). It detects high-risk misconfigurations—unencrypted databases, overly permissive S3 buckets—mandated for remediation under Section 6.xviii. For audits, CSPM generates automated reports proving infrastructure compliance.
Must Read: CSPM Explained: Boost Cloud Security with Posture Management
KSPM: Kubernetes Hardening Made Auditable
KSPM (Kubernetes Security Posture Management) enforces secure container configurations (Section 9.6.iii) and runtime policies. Per Section 6.xviii, organizations must audit cluster settings (RBAC, pod security) quarterly. KSPM automates checks for CVSS-scored vulnerabilities (5.xxiv), ensuring production environments resist compromises.
SIEM: The 180-Day Logging Imperative
SIEM solutions aren’t optional—Section 6.xxi requires centralized logging with 180-day retention for cloud workloads. This supports forensic investigations (Section 5) and real-time threat detection. Logs must include access events, network flows, and API calls, with integrity hashing to prevent tampering.
CIEM: Slashing Overprivileged Access
CIEM (Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management) operationalizes least privilege (Section 9.6.iv). By automating entitlement reviews, it eliminates excessive permissions for employees and vendors—a key focus area during third-party risk audits (6.xxiv). CIEM also maps access paths to critical assets, simplifying compliance proofs.
VM/CDR: Closing the Detection-Response Loop
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Vulnerability Management (VM): Scans cloud workloads using CERT-In’s required CVSS/EPSS scoring (Section 5.xxiv), prioritizing patch cycles.
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Cloud Detection & Response (CDR): Provides runtime threat hunting aligned with production environment security (5.xv) and incident response mandates (6.xviii).
Why Least Privilege Isn’t Optional:
Section 9.6.iv explicitly requires identity minimization across cloud environments. CIEM tools automate this by revoking stale permissions and enforcing Just-in-Time access—critical for limiting breach impact during vendor audits (6.xxiv).
5-Step CERT-In Cloud Compliance Roadmap
Based on the guidelines, prioritize these actions:
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Conduct CSPM gap analysis: Map current cloud configurations against CSA CCM (Section 8.ii).
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Deploy CIEM: Audit identities and enforce least privilege (9.6.iv), especially for third parties.
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Configure SIEM retention: Validate 180-day logging (6.xxi) with WORM storage.
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Schedule KSPM scans: Quarterly container audits per Section 6.xviii.
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Document vendor risks: Assess CSP shared responsibility alignment (6.xxiv).
Penalty Avoidance Checklist
Non-compliance penalties (Section 19) include service suspension. To mitigate risk:
- Retain vulnerability scan reports for 3 years
- Encrypt all audit trails
- Formalize cloud testing schedules annually
Conclusion: Compliance as Competitive Advantage
CERT-In’s 2025 guidelines transform cloud security from an optional layer to an operational imperative. With non-compliance risking debarment (Section 19), proactive adoption of CSPM, KSPM, and CIEM isn’t just regulatory—it’s strategic resilience. Employ Cy5’s ion Cloud Security platform in your cloud infrastructure and become compliant along with sustaining the reputation and trust of securing your data.
“CERT-In cloud compliance requirements mandate 180-day SIEM logging (Section 6.xxi), CSA CCM-aligned CSPM configurations (8.ii), and least privilege enforcement via CIEM (9.6.iv). Non-compliance risks operational suspension.”
