Linux is a versatile operating system. Its use cases vary greatly, from hosting hundreds of containers across a complex network, to running a single desktop, to the operating systems of TVs, Android phones and most Internet of Things (IoT) devices.

Cloud computing is a $136 billion industry, and it continues to grow. As consumers become more technology-savvy, individual use of cloud services enters the realm of convention. Cloud migration is picking up speed because it introduces cost-effective and flexible services into a previously expensive technological sphere. However, cloud computing also gives rise to new security challenges.

Kathy Wang, GitLab’s Sr. Director of Security, and Philippe Lafoucrière, a distinguished GitLab Engineer, recently presented “Towards Zero Trust at GitLab.com” at Google’s Cloud Next ‘19 event.

Progress in open source projects thrives on the sharing of information. Yet even with the best of intentions, much of the learning can still be considered tribal knowledge, traded between small groups of closely connected individuals. While, the osquery project certainly isn’t immune to this, the community has absolutely benefited from a passionate and growing base of users, developers, contributors and tinkerers that are dedicated to documenting and sharing what they’ve learned.

With weightier compliance penalties, ever-deepening cybercrime, and rapid adoption rates of public or hybrid cloud, financial services companies must pay closer attention to cloud compliance and stop treating it in a vacuum.

While endpoint agents have always tried to be the eyes and ears for security, an overabundance of them may be degrading security rather than improving it. A 2017 survey from Barkly and Ponemon Institute finds that companies have as many as seven different agents running on each endpoint, while at the same time, three out of four report still having difficulty managing endpoint risk. Other security solutions require agents for compliance, data leakage, vulnerability and patch management, network security solutions, systems management, and more. The industry has gone agent crazy, it seems, resulting in significant performance issues, escalating licensing costs, conflicts with other services running on the endpoints, maintenance headaches, difficulties for upgrades and certification issues, and more. 

There is a growing and passionate community around osquery, actively sharing information and perspective, answering questions, exposing challenges and dispelling misconceptions. Even so, learning the basics as you're getting started requires a lot of piecing together bits of wisdom (ie Googling + Reading + Networking). The intention of this post is to a) curate some of the great content from the community b) organize it to cover common questions for beginners c) incorporate some of what we've learned over the past three years through the Uptycs journey. If you like it, and it is helpful, throw a comment down below or let us know on Twitter and we'll create a more advanced FAQ next time around.