Cloud-Native Application Protection Platform (CNAPP)

TL;DR

A Cloud-Native Application Protection Platform (CNAPP) is a security solution. It unifies tools like cloud posture management (CSPM), workload protection (CWPP), and code security (ASPM) in one place.

It protects cloud-native applications throughout their lifecycle, starting with development and continuing through to production.

This platform will help you:

• Consolidate tools: Replace multiple separate security tools with a single, unified dashboard.
• Prioritize real risks: Connect code vulnerabilities with runtime exposure. This helps you filter out noise.
• Automate remediation: Move beyond simple alerts to actually fixing security issues with AI and automation.

CNAPP aims to provide a single view of securing your entire cloud environment, including code, cloud, and containers.

What Is CNAPP?

CNAPP (Cloud-Native Application Protection Platform) is a unified security model. It combines Cloud Security Posture Management (CSPM), Cloud Workload Protection (CWPP), Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management (CIEM), and Application Security Posture Management (ASPM).

Rather than relying on separate tools for code scanning, cloud monitoring, and container protection, CNAPP combines these features. It connects data from both development and production to see the full picture of any threat.

In simple terms:

CNAPP is like an ‘operating system’ for cloud security, linking code with the cloud to keep you protected end-to-end. One dashboard lets you manage code, cloud, and containers all together.

Why CNAPP Matters

Modern cloud environments are complex and always changing. Security teams often deal with too many tools and alerts because they use several disconnected scanners.

Here’s why CNAPP matters:

• Tool sprawl creates blind spots. Using separate tools for code (SAST) and cloud (CSPM) means you miss the context. A vulnerability in code might be harmless if it is not exposed to the internet. CNAPP sees both sides and knows the difference.
• Alert fatigue overwhelms security teams. Traditional tools generate thousands of low-priority alerts. CNAPP correlates data to prioritize the critical 1% of threats that actually have an attack path, which can significantly reduce mean-time-to-detect from days to hours in many environments. This risk-based approach enables teams to focus on genuine threats swiftly, enhancing operational efficiency and reducing overall risk exposure.
• DevSecOps requires speed. Developers cannot wait for security reviews. CNAPP embeds security into the CI/CD pipeline, catching issues early (Shift Left) without slowing down deployment.
• Compliance is continuous. Frameworks like SOC 2, HIPAA, and ISO 27001 require constant monitoring of both infrastructure and workloads. CNAPP automates this evidence collection.

How CNAPP Works

CNAPP works by scanning, correlating, and securing every layer of your cloud stack.

1. Unified Visibility (Connect)

The platform connects to your cloud providers (AWS, Azure, GCP) and code repositories (GitHub, GitLab) via APIs. It scans everything, including infrastructure, containers, serverless functions, and source code, without needing heavy agents.

Goal: Create a real-time inventory of all cloud assets and risks.

2. Contextual Correlation (Analyze)

CNAPP actively analyses the relationships between assets to make informed security decisions. If a container with a known vulnerability like CVE-X is found to be internet-facing, then CNAPP immediately flags it as a critical risk. Similarly, if an identity accessing a resource is found to have admin privileges, it highlights the potential for privilege escalation.

Goal: Filter out noise and identify “toxic combinations” that create real attack paths.

3. Integrated Remediation (Fix)

Once a risk is found, advanced CNAPP solutions like Plexicus AI do not just alert you; they help you fix it. This can be an automated pull request to fix code or a command to update a cloud configuration.

Goal: Reduce Mean Time to Remediation (MTTR) by automating the fix.

4. Continuous Compliance

The platform continuously maps findings against regulatory frameworks (PCI DSS, GDPR, NIST) to ensure you are always audit-ready.

Goal: Eliminate manual compliance spreadsheets and “panic mode” before audits.

Core Components of CNAPP

A true CNAPP solution unifies these key technologies:

• CSPM (Cloud Security Posture Management): Checks for cloud misconfigurations, such as open S3 buckets.
• CWPP (Cloud Workload Protection Platform): Protects running workloads (VMs, Containers) from runtime threats.
• ASPM (Application Security Posture Management): Scans code and dependencies (SAST/SCA) for vulnerabilities.
• CIEM (Cloud Infrastructure Entitlement Management): Manages identities and permissions (Least Privilege).
• IaC Security: Scans infrastructure code (Terraform, Kubernetes) before deployment.

Example in Practice

A DevOps team deploys a new microservice to AWS using Kubernetes.

Without CNAPP:

• The SAST tool finds a vulnerability in a library but marks it “Low Priority.”
• The CSPM tool sees a security group open to the internet, but doesn’t know what application is behind it.
• Result: The team ignores both alerts, and the application is breached.

With Plexicus CNAPP:

• The platform correlates the findings. It identifies that this “Low Priority” vulnerability is running in a container that is exposed to the internet via an open Security Group.
• The risk is upgraded to CRITICAL.
• Plexicus AI automatically generates a fix. It opens a Pull Request to patch the library and suggests a Terraform change to close the security group.

Result: The team sees the critical attack path immediately and merges the fix in minutes.

Who Uses CNAPP

• Cloud Security Architects: To design and oversee the holistic security strategy.
• DevSecOps Teams: To integrate security scans into CI/CD pipelines.
• SOC Analysts: To investigate runtime threats with full context.
• CTOs & CISOs: To get a high-level view of risk and compliance posture.

When to Apply CNAPP

CNAPP should be the foundation of your cloud security strategy:

• During Development: Scan code and IaC templates for misconfigurations.
• During CI/CD: Block builds that contain critical vulnerabilities or secrets.
• In Production: Monitor live workloads for suspicious behaviour and drift.
• For Audits: Generate instant reports for SOC 2, ISO 27001, etc.

Key Capabilities of CNAPP Tools

Most CNAPP solutions provide:

• Agentless Scanning: Quick visibility without installing software on every server.
• Attack Path Analysis: Visualizing how an attacker could move through your cloud.
• Code-to-Cloud Traceability: Tracing a production issue back to the exact line of code.
• Automated Remediation: The ability to fix issues, not just find them.
• Identity Management: Visualizing and restricting excessive permissions.

Example tools: Wiz, Orca Security, or Plexicus, which differentiates itself by using AI Agents to automatically generate code fixes for the vulnerabilities it finds.

Best Practices for CNAPP Implementation

• Start with Visibility: Connect your cloud accounts to get a full asset inventory.
• Prioritize by Context: Focus on fixing the 1% of issues that are exposed and exploitable.
• Empower Developers: Give developers tools that suggest fixes, not just block their builds.
• Shift Left: Catch misconfigurations in the code (IaC) before they create alerts in the cloud.
• Automate Everything: Use policies to automatically remediate simple misconfigurations.

Related Terms

• CSPM (Cloud Security Posture Management)
• ASPM (Application Security Posture Management)
• DevSecOps
• Infrastructure as Code (IaC) Security