GCP PCI Data Exposure Remediation

Learn how to fix PCI data exposures in Google Cloud Platform environments. Follow step-by-step guidance for PCI-DSS compliance and security.

data exposure

PCI-DSS

gcp

Why It Matters

The core goal is to rapidly remediate exposed PCI data across your Google Cloud Platform environment, ensuring cardholder data is properly secured and protected from unauthorized access. Fixing PCI data exposures in GCP is critical for organizations subject to PCI-DSS compliance, as it helps you eliminate security gaps and maintain customer trust while avoiding costly penalties and regulatory sanctions.

Primary Risk: Data exposure of payment card information

Relevant Regulation: PCI-DSS Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard

Swift remediation reduces your attack surface, protects sensitive cardholder data, and ensures continuous compliance with PCI-DSS requirements.

Prerequisites

Permissions & Roles

  • Security Admin or Project Owner role
  • Cloud Storage Admin privileges
  • IAM Security Reviewer access
  • Security Command Center Editor role

External Tools

  • gcloud CLI
  • Cyera DSPM account
  • Terraform (optional)
  • API credentials

Prior Setup

  • GCP project configured
  • Security Command Center enabled
  • VPC and firewall rules established
  • Audit logging configured

Introducing Cyera

Cyera is a modern Data Security Posture Management (DSPM) platform that discovers, classifies, and continuously monitors your sensitive data across cloud services. By leveraging advanced AI and machine learning models including Named Entity Recognition (NER) and pattern matching algorithms, Cyera automatically identifies PCI data exposures in your GCP environment and provides intelligent remediation recommendations to ensure rapid compliance restoration.

Step-by-Step Guide

1
Assess current exposure scope

Review Cyera's discovery findings to understand the full scope of PCI data exposures across Cloud Storage buckets, BigQuery datasets, and Compute Engine instances.

gcloud projects list --filter="name:pci-*"

2
Implement immediate containment

Apply emergency access controls to limit exposure. Remove public access from storage buckets, update IAM policies, and enable private Google access where needed.

gsutil iam ch -d allUsers:objectViewer gs://bucket-name

3
Apply encryption and access controls

Enable customer-managed encryption keys (CMEK) for PCI data storage, implement fine-grained IAM policies, and configure VPC Service Controls to create security perimeters.

gcloud kms keys create pci-key --location=global --keyring=pci-ring

4
Establish monitoring and alerting

Configure Security Command Center custom detectors, set up Cloud Monitoring alerts for unauthorized access attempts, and implement continuous scanning through Cyera to prevent future exposures.

Architecture & Workflow

GCP Security Command Center

Central security dashboard and finding management

Cloud IAM & VPC Controls

Access management and network security

Cyera DSPM Engine

AI-powered PCI data discovery and classification

Remediation Orchestration

Automated policy enforcement and alerts

Remediation Flow Summary

Identify Exposure → Contain Access → Apply Security Controls → Monitor & Alert

Best Practices & Tips

Remediation Prioritization

  • Address public exposures first
  • Focus on production environments
  • Prioritize high-volume PCI datasets

Security Controls Implementation

  • Use least privilege access principles
  • Implement data tokenization where possible
  • Enable audit logging for all PCI resources

Common Pitfalls

  • Overlooking cross-project resource sharing
  • Forgetting to update legacy IAM bindings
  • Missing PCI data in temporary storage

References & Further Reading

Next Steps

🛡️ Prevent: Implement proactive PCI data protection 🔍 Detect: Set up continuous PCI data monitoring