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name: configuring-aws-verified-access-for-ztna description: Configure AWS Verified Access to provide VPN-less zero trust network access to internal applications using identity and device posture verification with Cedar policy language. domain: cybersecurity subdomain: zero-trust-architecture tags: [zero-trust, aws, verified-access, ztna, cedar-policy, vpn-less, identity-verification, device-posture, aws-ram] version: "1.0" author: mahipal license: Apache-2.0

Configuring AWS Verified Access for ZTNA

Overview

AWS Verified Access is a Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) service that provides secure, VPN-less access to corporate applications hosted in AWS. It evaluates each access request in real-time against granular conditional access policies written in the Cedar policy language, ensuring access is granted per-application only when specific security requirements such as user identity and device security posture are met and maintained. Verified Access integrates with AWS IAM Identity Center, third-party identity providers (Okta, CrowdStrike, JumpCloud, Jamf), and device management solutions. For multi-account deployments, AWS Resource Access Manager (RAM) enables sharing Verified Access groups across organizational units.

Prerequisites

AWS account with appropriate IAM permissions
Identity provider (AWS IAM Identity Center, Okta, or OIDC-compatible)
Device trust provider (CrowdStrike, Jamf, JumpCloud, or AWS Verified Access native)
Internal Application Load Balancer (ALB) or network interface endpoint
Understanding of Cedar policy language
VPC with application workloads to protect

Architecture

    End User (Browser)
         |
         | HTTPS
         v
  +------+--------+
  | Verified      |
  | Access        |
  | Endpoint      |
  | (Public DNS)  |
  +------+--------+
         |
  +------+--------+
  | Verified      |  <-- Cedar Access Policies
  | Access        |  <-- Identity Provider Signals
  | Instance      |  <-- Device Trust Signals
  | (Policy       |
  |  Evaluation)  |
  +------+--------+
         |
  +------+--------+
  | Verified      |
  | Access Group  |
  | (App Group)   |
  +------+--------+
         |
  +------+--------+
  | Internal ALB  |
  | or ENI Target |
  +------+--------+
         |
  +------+--------+
  | Application   |
  | (Private VPC) |
  +--------------+

Core Components

Verified Access Instance

The regional entity that evaluates access requests against policies.

bash

# Create Verified Access Instance via AWS CLI
aws ec2 create-verified-access-instance \
  --description "Production Zero Trust Instance" \
  --tag-specifications 'ResourceType=verified-access-instance,Tags=[{Key=Environment,Value=production}]'

Trust Providers

Identity Trust Provider (AWS IAM Identity Center)

bash

# Create identity trust provider
aws ec2 create-verified-access-trust-provider \
  --trust-provider-type user \
  --user-trust-provider-type iam-identity-center \
  --policy-reference-name "idc" \
  --description "IAM Identity Center trust provider" \
  --tag-specifications 'ResourceType=verified-access-trust-provider,Tags=[{Key=Type,Value=identity}]'

Identity Trust Provider (OIDC - Okta)

bash

aws ec2 create-verified-access-trust-provider \
  --trust-provider-type user \
  --user-trust-provider-type oidc \
  --oidc-options '{
    "Issuer": "https://company.okta.com/oauth2/default",
    "AuthorizationEndpoint": "https://company.okta.com/oauth2/default/v1/authorize",
    "TokenEndpoint": "https://company.okta.com/oauth2/default/v1/token",
    "UserInfoEndpoint": "https://company.okta.com/oauth2/default/v1/userinfo",
    "ClientId": "0oa1234567890",
    "ClientSecret": "client-secret-here",
    "Scope": "openid profile groups"
  }' \
  --policy-reference-name "okta" \
  --description "Okta OIDC trust provider"

Device Trust Provider (CrowdStrike)

bash

aws ec2 create-verified-access-trust-provider \
  --trust-provider-type device \
  --device-trust-provider-type crowdstrike \
  --device-options '{
    "TenantId": "crowdstrike-tenant-id",
    "PublicSigningKeyUrl": "https://api.crowdstrike.com/zero-trust/v2/certificates"
  }' \
  --policy-reference-name "crowdstrike" \
  --description "CrowdStrike device trust provider"

Attach Trust Providers to Instance

bash

# Attach identity provider
aws ec2 attach-verified-access-trust-provider \
  --verified-access-instance-id vai-0123456789abcdef \
  --verified-access-trust-provider-id vatp-0123456789abcdef
 
# Attach device provider
aws ec2 attach-verified-access-trust-provider \
  --verified-access-instance-id vai-0123456789abcdef \
  --verified-access-trust-provider-id vatp-device123456

Verified Access Groups

bash

# Create a group for web applications
aws ec2 create-verified-access-group \
  --verified-access-instance-id vai-0123456789abcdef \
  --description "Production Web Applications" \
  --policy-document 'permit(principal, action, resource)
    when {
      context.okta.groups.contains("production-access") &&
      context.crowdstrike.assessment.overall > 50
    };' \
  --tag-specifications 'ResourceType=verified-access-group,Tags=[{Key=Tier,Value=web}]'

Verified Access Endpoints

bash

# Create endpoint for ALB-backed application
aws ec2 create-verified-access-endpoint \
  --verified-access-group-id vag-0123456789abcdef \
  --endpoint-type load-balancer \
  --attachment-type vpc \
  --domain-certificate-arn arn:aws:acm:us-east-1:123456789012:certificate/xxxx \
  --application-domain app.internal.company.com \
  --endpoint-domain-prefix myapp \
  --load-balancer-options '{
    "LoadBalancerArn": "arn:aws:elasticloadbalancing:us-east-1:123456789012:loadbalancer/app/internal-alb/xxxx",
    "Port": 443,
    "Protocol": "https",
    "SubnetIds": ["subnet-abc123", "subnet-def456"]
  }' \
  --security-group-ids sg-0123456789abcdef \
  --description "Internal HR Application"

Cedar Policy Language

Policy Basics

cedar

// Allow access for users in the engineering group with compliant devices
permit(principal, action, resource)
when {
    context.okta.groups.contains("engineering") &&
    context.crowdstrike.assessment.overall > 70 &&
    context.crowdstrike.assessment.sensor_config.status == "active"
};
 
// Deny access from unmanaged devices
forbid(principal, action, resource)
when {
    !context.crowdstrike.assessment.sensor_config.status == "active"
};

Advanced Policy Examples

cedar

// Time-based access - only during business hours (UTC)
permit(principal, action, resource)
when {
    context.okta.groups.contains("contractors") &&
    context.http_request.http_method == "GET" &&
    context.crowdstrike.assessment.overall > 80
};
 
// Restrict admin access to specific user group with high device trust
permit(principal, action, resource)
when {
    context.idc.groups.contains("admins") &&
    context.crowdstrike.assessment.overall > 90 &&
    context.crowdstrike.assessment.os_version.startswith("Windows 11") ||
    context.crowdstrike.assessment.os_version.startswith("macOS 14")
};
 
// Allow read-only access for lower trust levels
permit(principal, action, resource)
when {
    context.okta.groups.contains("read-only") &&
    context.crowdstrike.assessment.overall > 30 &&
    context.http_request.http_method == "GET"
};

Group-Level vs Endpoint-Level Policies

cedar

// Group-level policy (applies to all endpoints in the group)
// Set on the Verified Access Group
permit(principal, action, resource)
when {
    context.okta.groups.contains("employees") &&
    context.crowdstrike.assessment.overall > 50
};
 
// Endpoint-level policy (additional restrictions for specific app)
// Set on the Verified Access Endpoint
permit(principal, action, resource)
when {
    context.okta.groups.contains("hr-team") &&
    context.okta.email.endsWith("@company.com")
};

Terraform Configuration

hcl

terraform {
  required_providers {
    aws = {
      source  = "hashicorp/aws"
      version = "~> 5.0"
    }
  }
}
 
# Verified Access Instance
resource "aws_verifiedaccess_instance" "main" {
  description = "Production Zero Trust Access"
  tags = {
    Environment = "production"
  }
}
 
# Identity Trust Provider (OIDC)
resource "aws_verifiedaccess_trust_provider" "okta" {
  policy_reference_name    = "okta"
  trust_provider_type      = "user"
  user_trust_provider_type = "oidc"
  description              = "Okta identity provider"
 
  oidc_options {
    authorization_endpoint = "https://company.okta.com/oauth2/default/v1/authorize"
    client_id              = var.okta_client_id
    client_secret          = var.okta_client_secret
    issuer                 = "https://company.okta.com/oauth2/default"
    scope                  = "openid profile groups"
    token_endpoint         = "https://company.okta.com/oauth2/default/v1/token"
    user_info_endpoint     = "https://company.okta.com/oauth2/default/v1/userinfo"
  }
}
 
# Device Trust Provider (CrowdStrike)
resource "aws_verifiedaccess_trust_provider" "crowdstrike" {
  policy_reference_name     = "crowdstrike"
  trust_provider_type       = "device"
  device_trust_provider_type = "crowdstrike"
  description               = "CrowdStrike device trust"
 
  device_options {
    tenant_id = var.crowdstrike_tenant_id
  }
}
 
# Attach providers to instance
resource "aws_verifiedaccess_instance_trust_provider_attachment" "okta" {
  verifiedaccess_instance_id       = aws_verifiedaccess_instance.main.id
  verifiedaccess_trust_provider_id = aws_verifiedaccess_trust_provider.okta.id
}
 
resource "aws_verifiedaccess_instance_trust_provider_attachment" "crowdstrike" {
  verifiedaccess_instance_id       = aws_verifiedaccess_instance.main.id
  verifiedaccess_trust_provider_id = aws_verifiedaccess_trust_provider.crowdstrike.id
}
 
# Verified Access Group
resource "aws_verifiedaccess_group" "web_apps" {
  verifiedaccess_instance_id = aws_verifiedaccess_instance.main.id
  description                = "Production Web Applications"
 
  policy_document = <<-CEDAR
    permit(principal, action, resource)
    when {
      context.okta.groups.contains("production-access") &&
      context.crowdstrike.assessment.overall > 50
    };
  CEDAR
 
  tags = {
    Tier = "web"
  }
}
 
# Verified Access Endpoint
resource "aws_verifiedaccess_endpoint" "internal_app" {
  verified_access_group_id = aws_verifiedaccess_group.web_apps.id
  endpoint_type            = "load-balancer"
  attachment_type          = "vpc"
  domain_certificate_arn   = aws_acm_certificate.app.arn
  application_domain       = "app.internal.company.com"
  endpoint_domain_prefix   = "myapp"
  description              = "Internal Application"
 
  load_balancer_options {
    load_balancer_arn = aws_lb.internal.arn
    port              = 443
    protocol          = "https"
    subnet_ids        = var.private_subnet_ids
  }
 
  security_group_ids = [aws_security_group.verified_access.id]
 
  policy_document = <<-CEDAR
    permit(principal, action, resource)
    when {
      context.okta.groups.contains("app-users")
    };
  CEDAR
}
 
# Logging configuration
resource "aws_verifiedaccess_instance_logging_configuration" "main" {
  verifiedaccess_instance_id = aws_verifiedaccess_instance.main.id
 
  access_logs {
    cloudwatch_logs {
      enabled   = true
      log_group = aws_cloudwatch_log_group.verified_access.name
    }
    s3 {
      enabled     = true
      bucket_name = aws_s3_bucket.access_logs.id
      prefix      = "verified-access/"
    }
  }
}
 
resource "aws_cloudwatch_log_group" "verified_access" {
  name              = "/aws/verified-access/production"
  retention_in_days = 90
}

Multi-Account Deployment with AWS RAM

hcl

# Share Verified Access Group across accounts via RAM
resource "aws_ram_resource_share" "verified_access" {
  name                      = "verified-access-share"
  allow_external_principals = false
}
 
resource "aws_ram_resource_association" "group_share" {
  resource_arn       = aws_verifiedaccess_group.web_apps.verified_access_group_arn
  resource_share_arn = aws_ram_resource_share.verified_access.arn
}
 
resource "aws_ram_principal_association" "workload_ou" {
  principal          = "arn:aws:organizations::123456789012:ou/o-xxxx/ou-xxxx-xxxxxxxx"
  resource_share_arn = aws_ram_resource_share.verified_access.arn
}

Monitoring and Logging

bash

# Query access logs in CloudWatch
aws logs filter-log-events \
  --log-group-name /aws/verified-access/production \
  --filter-pattern '{ $.status_code = "403" }' \
  --start-time $(date -d '1 hour ago' +%s000)
 
# CloudWatch alarm for access denials
aws cloudwatch put-metric-alarm \
  --alarm-name "VerifiedAccess-HighDenialRate" \
  --metric-name "AccessDenied" \
  --namespace "AWS/VerifiedAccess" \
  --statistic Sum \
  --period 300 \
  --threshold 100 \
  --comparison-operator GreaterThanThreshold \
  --evaluation-periods 2 \
  --alarm-actions arn:aws:sns:us-east-1:123456789012:security-alerts

Security Best Practices

Layer policies: Use group-level policies for broad controls and endpoint-level for app-specific restrictions
Require device trust: Always include device posture checks in Cedar policies
Enable access logging: Send to both CloudWatch and S3 for real-time monitoring and long-term retention
Use RAM for multi-account: Share groups across OUs instead of duplicating configuration
Rotate OIDC secrets: Automate client secret rotation via Secrets Manager
Test policies in non-production: Validate Cedar policies before production deployment
Set high device trust thresholds: Require overall score above 70 for production access
Monitor for policy drift: Use AWS Config rules to detect unauthorized changes

References

← v1.0.0 All versions