AWS Certificate Manager vs AWS CloudHSM

Overview

AWS CloudHSM

Stacks10

Followers56

Votes0

AWS Certificate Manager

Stacks102

Followers52

Votes0

AWS Certificate Manager vs AWS CloudHSM: What are the differences?

Introduction

This markdown code provides a comparison between two AWS services: AWS Certificate Manager (ACM) and AWS CloudHSM. The key differences between these services are outlined below.

Pricing model: AWS Certificate Manager (ACM) is a managed service that provides SSL/TLS certificates for free. It eliminates the need to purchase, install, and renew SSL/TLS certificates. On the other hand, AWS CloudHSM is a dedicated hardware security module (HSM) that provides secure key storage and cryptographic operations. It charges an hourly fee for each HSM instance used.
Use case: AWS Certificate Manager (ACM) is primarily used for managing SSL/TLS certificates for securing websites and applications deployed on AWS. It simplifies the process of certificate management and enables automatic renewals. In contrast, AWS CloudHSM is used for highly regulated industries or applications that require a high level of security and control over key management. It provides hardware-based key storage and cryptographic operations.
Integration with other services: AWS Certificate Manager (ACM) integrates seamlessly with other AWS services like Amazon CloudFront, Elastic Load Balancer, and Amazon API Gateway. It simplifies the process of provisioning, deploying, and managing SSL/TLS certificates for these services. On the contrary, AWS CloudHSM can be integrated with various AWS services and applications through the use of AWS CloudHSM client software. It allows applications to utilize the secure key storage and cryptographic operations provided by the HSM.
Managed vs. self-managed: AWS Certificate Manager (ACM) is a fully managed service where AWS handles the infrastructure, maintenance, and security of the certificates. Users only need to request, deploy, and manage the certificates through the AWS Management Console or APIs. In contrast, AWS CloudHSM requires users to manage the HSM instances themselves, including hardware provisioning, software installation, and configuration. Users also have full control over the lifecycle of the keys stored in the HSM.
Region availability: AWS Certificate Manager (ACM) is available in various AWS regions globally, allowing users to provision and manage certificates close to their applications. AWS CloudHSM, on the other hand, has limited availability and is currently only offered in a subset of AWS regions.
Scalability and availability: AWS Certificate Manager (ACM) automatically scales to handle high levels of demand and provides high availability for certificate provisioning and management. It is designed to be highly reliable and fault-tolerant. Conversely, AWS CloudHSM provides scalability and availability through the use of multiple HSM instances in different availability zones. Users can scale their cryptographic operations by deploying additional HSM instances according to their workload requirements.

In summary, AWS Certificate Manager (ACM) is a managed service that simplifies SSL/TLS certificate management and offers free certificates, while AWS CloudHSM is a dedicated hardware security module for highly regulated industries or applications requiring secure key storage and cryptographic operations.

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Detailed Comparison

AWS CloudHSM	AWS Certificate Manager
The AWS CloudHSM service allows you to protect your encryption keys within HSMs designed and validated to government standards for secure key management. You can securely generate, store, and manage the cryptographic keys used for data encryption such that they are accessible only by you. AWS CloudHSM helps you comply with strict key management requirements without sacrificing application performance.	It removes the time-consuming manual process of purchasing, uploading, and renewing SSL/TLS certificates. With this service, you can quickly request a certificate, deploy it on AWS resources.
Protect and store your cryptographic keys with industry standard, tamper-resistant HSM appliances. No one but you has access to your keys (including Amazon administrators who manage and maintain the appliance).;Use your most sensitive and regulated data on Amazon EC2 without giving applications direct access to your data's encryption keys.;Store and access data reliably from your applications that demand highly available and durable key storage and cryptographic operations.;Use AWS CloudHSM in conjunction with your compatible on-premise HSMs to replicate keys among on-premise HSMs and CloudHSMs. This increases key durability and makes it easy to migrate cryptographic applications from your datacenter to AWS.	Free public certificates for ACM-integrated services; Managed certificate renewal; Get certificates easily
Statistics
Stacks 10	Stacks 102
Followers 56	Followers 52
Votes 0	Votes 0

What are some alternatives to AWS CloudHSM, AWS Certificate Manager?

Let's Encrypt

It is a free, automated, and open certificate authority brought to you by the non-profit Internet Security Research Group (ISRG).

AWS Key Management Service

AWS Key Management Service (KMS) is a managed service that makes it easy for you to create and control the encryption keys used to encrypt your data, and uses Hardware Security Modules (HSMs) to protect the security of your keys. AWS Key Management Service is integrated with other AWS services including Amazon EBS, Amazon S3, and Amazon Redshift. AWS Key Management Service is also integrated with AWS CloudTrail to provide you with logs of all key usage to help meet your regulatory and compliance needs.

Ellipticc — Cloud Storage Built for Privacy and Speed

Ellipticc — End-to-end encrypted, post-quantum secure cloud storage for privacy-first users and teams.

LocalKeys

LocalKeys is a local-first secret manager for developers. It replaces vulnerable .env files with an AES-256-GCM encrypted vault that works completely offline and requires explicit approval before any process can access your secrets.

Azure Key Vault

Secure key management is essential to protect data in the cloud. Use Azure Key Vault to encrypt keys and small secrets like passwords that use keys stored in hardware security modules (HSMs). For more assurance, import or generate keys in HSMs, and Microsoft processes your keys in FIPS 140-2 Level 2 validated HSMs (hardware and firmware). With Key Vault, Microsoft doesn’t see or extract your keys. Monitor and audit your key use with Azure logging—pipe logs into Azure HDInsight or your security information and event management (SIEM) solution for more analysis and threat detection.

F5

It powers apps from development through their entire life cycle, so our customers can deliver differentiated, high-performing, and secure digital experiences.

OneTrust

A platform to help organizations be more trusted, and operationalize privacy, security, data governance, and compliance programs.

IBM QRadar

It is an enterprise security information and event management (SIEM) product. It includes out-of-the-box analytics, correlation rules and dashboards to help customers address their most pressing security use cases — without requiring significant customization effort.

Imperva

It provides complete cyber security by protecting what really matters most—your data and applications—whether on-premises or in the cloud.

Acra

It provides data protection in distributed applications, web and mobile apps with PostgreSQL, MySQL, KV backends through selective encryption.

Related Comparisons

AWS Certificate Manager vs AWS CloudHSM: What are the differences?

Introduction

This markdown code provides a comparison between two AWS services: AWS Certificate Manager (ACM) and AWS CloudHSM. The key differences between these services are outlined below.

Pricing model: AWS Certificate Manager (ACM) is a managed service that provides SSL/TLS certificates for free. It eliminates the need to purchase, install, and renew SSL/TLS certificates. On the other hand, AWS CloudHSM is a dedicated hardware security module (HSM) that provides secure key storage and cryptographic operations. It charges an hourly fee for each HSM instance used.
Use case: AWS Certificate Manager (ACM) is primarily used for managing SSL/TLS certificates for securing websites and applications deployed on AWS. It simplifies the process of certificate management and enables automatic renewals. In contrast, AWS CloudHSM is used for highly regulated industries or applications that require a high level of security and control over key management. It provides hardware-based key storage and cryptographic operations.
Integration with other services: AWS Certificate Manager (ACM) integrates seamlessly with other AWS services like Amazon CloudFront, Elastic Load Balancer, and Amazon API Gateway. It simplifies the process of provisioning, deploying, and managing SSL/TLS certificates for these services. On the contrary, AWS CloudHSM can be integrated with various AWS services and applications through the use of AWS CloudHSM client software. It allows applications to utilize the secure key storage and cryptographic operations provided by the HSM.
Managed vs. self-managed: AWS Certificate Manager (ACM) is a fully managed service where AWS handles the infrastructure, maintenance, and security of the certificates. Users only need to request, deploy, and manage the certificates through the AWS Management Console or APIs. In contrast, AWS CloudHSM requires users to manage the HSM instances themselves, including hardware provisioning, software installation, and configuration. Users also have full control over the lifecycle of the keys stored in the HSM.
Region availability: AWS Certificate Manager (ACM) is available in various AWS regions globally, allowing users to provision and manage certificates close to their applications. AWS CloudHSM, on the other hand, has limited availability and is currently only offered in a subset of AWS regions.
Scalability and availability: AWS Certificate Manager (ACM) automatically scales to handle high levels of demand and provides high availability for certificate provisioning and management. It is designed to be highly reliable and fault-tolerant. Conversely, AWS CloudHSM provides scalability and availability through the use of multiple HSM instances in different availability zones. Users can scale their cryptographic operations by deploying additional HSM instances according to their workload requirements.

AWS Certificate Manager vs AWS CloudHSM

Overview

AWS Certificate Manager vs AWS CloudHSM: What are the differences?