Security Brutalism Program High-Level Overview
What Does a Brutalist Security Program Look Like?
A Brutalist Security program focuses on basics done exceptionally well, and rejects unproven complexity. Think of a secure bunker, not a fancy glass building. It’s not pretty, but it’s bulletproof.
Key Characteristics:
- Mandatory controls that can't be bypassed.
- Zero trust as the default stance.
- No hidden assumptions.
- High transparency + accountability.
- Everything is logged, verified, and auditable.
The Approach – Build It Like Concrete
Access is Earned, Not Assumed
- Principle of Least Privilege: Nobody gets access by default.
- Enforce Zero Trust Network Architecture.
- Use Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) everywhere—even internally.
- Automate access reviews quarterly or more frequently.
- Remove unused accounts after 30 days of inactivity.
Access should be based on role and need, not simply on being an employee.
Everything is Auditable and Immutable
- Centralized log aggregation with write-once storage. Read would be done only by the Incident Response monitoring and detection automation function.
- Deploy tamper-evident logs for critical actions.
- No shadow IT: All assets must be registered and monitored.
- Use digital signing for code and configuration changes.
Any issue can be fully retraced and analyzed after the fact.
Systems Should Fail Securely, Not Conveniently
- No "fail open" configurations (e.g., auth errors shouldn't default to allow).
- Backup systems should be air-gapped and tested regularly.
- Default to deny unless explicitly whitelisted.
- Assume systems will be attacked. Design for containment and response, not just prevention.
Ensure systems fail securely — never default to open or permissive states when errors occur.
Security is Part of the Build Process
- Adopt Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC) with security linting built-in.
- No manual deployments or privileged shell access to production.
- Every deployment is: Reproducible; logged; peer-reviewed.
- Implement continuous security scanning in CI/CD (e.g., for secrets, dependencies, misconfigs).
Real security is foundational, not a feature.
Reassess Constantly, Improve Ruthlessly
- Perform quarterly Red Team or tabletop exercises.
- Regularly simulate insider threats and supply chain attacks.
- Create a brutalist security scorecard. An example: % of systems with MFA, % of infra defined in code, time to detect/respond, and % of accounts with over-privilege.
Trust, but verify. Then verify again.
Fundamental Controls and How to Deploy Them
Note: This list is not all-inclusive.
| Control | Description | How It’s Deployed | Frequency of Review |
|---|---|---|---|
| MFA Everywhere | No access without MFA | Enforced via SSO, IDP policies | Perform a monthly audit |
| IAM Hardening | No overprivileged accounts | Automated role analysis | Perform a quarterly audit |
| Asset Inventory | Know what you have | CMDB + auto discovery tools | Continuous audit |
| Secure Baselines | All systems follow hardened templates | IaC, validated at build | Checked with every release |
| Logging and Monitoring | Centralized, immutable logs | SIEM + WORM storage | Real-time alerts sent |
| Secrets Management | No secrets in code or configs | Vault, KMS, dynamic secrets | Weekly or daily scans |
| Incident Drills | Practice failure before it happens | Conduct red team or tabletops | Perform quarterly |
The End Result: What You Get
A brutalist security program delivers:
- Predictable, explainable security. No hidden complexity.
- High confidence in resilience under stress.
- Reduced attack surface across people, process, and tech.
- Faster incident response, lower blast radius.
- Cost-effectiveness. Focusing on fundamental controls and avoiding unnecessary complexity reduces spending.
- Trust from customers, regulators, and board members
Bottom line for leadership: Simplicity is security. Security Brulalism sacrifices convenience in the short term to eliminate chaos and risk long term.