AWS rolls out expanded security competency in partner programme

Vendor launches eight new categories for customers to find the right partner

AWS has expanded and revamped its partner network security competency with the introduction of eight new categories to help customers more easily locate partner software and service solutions.

The public cloud vendor has used its annual re:Inforce conference to launch the categories, which are Threat Detection and Response; Identity and Access Management; Infrastructure Security; Data Protection; Compliance and Privacy; Application Security; Perimeter Protection; and Core Security.

AWS' worldwide head of cloud foundations for the AWS Partner Network, Ryan Orsi, claims the move will allow partners to "increase their business, increase their trust and visibility with their customers and prospects out there to show they have all the right skill sets and knowledge about AWS environments."

"The partner opportunity is around aligning their product or service, their messaging, and their go-to-market strategy to what AWS is seeing as the most highly in-need challenges out there for security with these new categories," he added.

The categories

In order to gain each competency, partners will have to fit specific requirements. These include being able to "demonstrate the ability to spot issues before they impact an account and act on that knowledge" to be a Threat Detection and Response partner.

Partners will need to show a "proven track record of helping customers define, enforce, and audit permissions across internal and external services, actions, and resources, including AWS accounts" to gain the Identity and Access Management competency and must demonstrate that they can protect customer systems and services to be an Infrastructure Protection partner.

Data Protection, meanwhile, focuses on "understanding sensitive data in a customer environment and creating controls based on different levels of sensitivity" while Compliance and Privacy is for partners that have a "proven track record of helping customers build environments in the cloud that adhere to industry standard".

Application Security helps customers to test and protect their code from threats and Perimeter Protection partners are those who help customers implement and manage AWS Shield Advanced to protect AWS resources.

Finally, AWS Partners in the Core Security category will demonstrate "broad and deep knowledge" across the core categories of Access Management, Threat Detection and Response, Infrastructure Protection, Data Protection, Compliance and Privacy, and Application Security, and must be certified in all.