Install testing module in your Cloud

Introduction

API Security testing involves sending malicious API requests to your (staging) server. By default, these malicious testing requests are sent from the Testing module installed within Akto Cloud.

There could be multiple reasons why you'd want to install testing module within your Cloud.

1. Whitelisting Akto's IP in Security Group or WAF isn't an option

2. The staging server isn't reachable from public domain

3. The WAF would block most requests (or block Akto's IP)

4. The API domain isn't resolvable from public domain

5. The API is completely internal

Testing from Customer Cloud

1. Login to Akto dashboard at app.akto.io

2. Go to Quick Start > Hybrid Saas > Click on “Connect” button

3. Copy the JWT token (marked in red)

You can now use a Helm-chart to install Akto Security Testing module in your cloud or install manually

Terraform

1. To install using Terraform, use the Terraform script here.

   1. Please make sure you install it in a private subnet from your application VPC.

   2. This private subnet should also have network connectivity (typically via NAT).

2. For Database Abstractor Service Token input in the terraform script specify the JWT token copied in the earlier step.

3. Once the terraform script has finished running, you should be able to see a new autoscaling group created with 1 Akto Testing EC2 instance running.

Helm-chart

1. Download/clone our helm chart https://github.com/akto-api-security/helm-charts/tree/mini_testing

2. Open your terminal, and go to the location where you have downloaded the helm charts

3. Run helm install aktotesting hybrid-redact -n akto --set tokens.env.databaseAbstractorToken={{paste_token_here}}

Linux VM

1. Create a new instance with the following requirements

   1. Platform

      1. Amazon Linux 2023

   2. Spec

      1. 2 vCPU

      2. 4GB RAM

      3. 20GB Hard disk

      4. Don’t use burstable instances

   3. Network

      1. Private subnet

      2. connectivity to internet (typically via NAT)

      3. connectivity to your staging service

   4. Security groups

      1. Inbound - Open only port 22 for SSH

      2. Outbound - Open all

2. SSH into this new instance in your Cloud

3. Run sudo su -

4. Install docker and docker-compose.

5. Paste the following in docker-compose-testing.yml file. Use token from step(3) for DATABASE_ABSTRACTOR_SERVICE_TOKEN value

   version: '3.8'
   services:
     akto-api-security-testing:
       image: public.ecr.aws/aktosecurity/akto-api-security-mini-testing:latest
       environment:
         RUNTIME_MODE: hybrid
         DATABASE_ABSTRACTOR_SERVICE_TOKEN: <Paste_token_here>
         PUPPETEER_REPLAY_SERVICE_URL: "http://akto-puppeteer-replay:3000"
       restart: always
   
     akto-api-security-puppeteer-replay:
       image: public.ecr.aws/aktosecurity/akto-puppeteer-replay:latest
       ports:
         - "3000:3000"
       environment:
         NODE_ENV: production
       restart: always
   
     watchtower:
       image: containrrr/watchtower
       restart: always
       volumes:
         - /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock
       environment:
         WATCHTOWER_CLEANUP: true
         WATCHTOWER_POLL_INTERVAL: 1800
       labels:
         com.centurylinklabs.watchtower.enable: "false"

6. Run docker-compose -f docker-compose-testing.yml up -d

7. Run systemctl enable /usr/lib/systemd/system/docker.service to ensure Docker starts up in case of instance restarts