Detections
Analytics

1.15 Ensure API Keys Are Rotated Every 90 Days

Information

API Keys should only be used for services in cases where other authentication methods are unavailable. If they are in use it is recommended to rotate API keys every 90 days.

Rationale:

Security risks involved in using API-Keys are listed below:

API keys are simple encrypted strings

API keys do not identify the user or the application making the API request

API keys are typically accessible to clients, making it easy to discover and steal an API key

Because of these potential risks, Google recommends using the standard authentication flow instead of API Keys. However, there are limited cases where API keys are more appropriate. For example, if there is a mobile application that needs to use the Google Cloud Translation API, but doesn't otherwise need a backend server, API keys are the simplest way to authenticate to that API.

Once a key is stolen, it has no expiration, meaning it may be used indefinitely unless the project owner revokes or regenerates the key. Rotating API keys will reduce the window of opportunity for an access key that is associated with a compromised or terminated account to be used.

API keys should be rotated to ensure that data cannot be accessed with an old key that might have been lost, cracked, or stolen.

Impact:

Regenerating Key may break existing client connectivity as the client will try to connect with older API keys they have stored on devices.

Solution

From Google Cloud Console

Go to APIs & Services\Credentials using https://console.cloud.google.com/apis/credentials

In the section API Keys, Click the API Key Name. The API Key properties display on a new page.

Click REGENERATE KEY to rotate API key.

Click Save.

Repeat steps 2,3,4 for every API key that has not been rotated in the last 90 days.

Note: Do not set HTTP referrers to wild-cards (* or *.[TLD] or .[TLD]/) allowing access to any/wide HTTP referrer(s)
Do not set IP addresses and referrer to any host (0.0.0.0 or 0.0.0.0/0 or ::0)
From Google Cloud CLI
There is not currently a way to regenerate and API key using gcloud commands. To 'regenerate' a key you will need to create a new one, duplicate the restrictions from the key being rotated, and delete the old key.

List existing keys.

gcloud services api-keys list

Note the UID and restrictions of the key to regenerate.

Run this command to create a new API key. <key_name> is the display name of the new key.

gcloud alpha services api-keys create --display-name='<key_name>'

Note the UID of the newly created key

Run the update command to add required restrictions.

Note - the restriction may vary for each key. Refer to this documentation for the appropriate flags.
https://cloud.google.com/sdk/gcloud/reference/alpha/services/api-keys/update

gcloud alpha services api-keys update <UID of new key>

Delete the old key.

gcloud alpha services api-keys delete <UID of old key>

See Also

https://workbench.cisecurity.org/benchmarks/11843

Item Details

Category: PLANNING, SYSTEM AND SERVICES ACQUISITION

References: 800-53|PL-8, 800-53|SA-8

Plugin: GCP

Control ID: 3f24af3a9e97850482cb2caa1c9b987d79bbf0e186c780bde884a76165a09c02