Automated Credential Rotation

The client's HR platform handles sensitive HR and payroll data for their customers. Service accounts for MSSQL databases and RabbitMQ queues had historically been managed manually, with passwords rarely or never rotated.

Every credential that is not rotated is a security risk. With regulatory requirements for handling sensitive employee data, the situation was not acceptable.

The client needed an automated solution that rotates credentials through AWS Secrets Manager without operational disruption for end users, plus an environment strategy that enables safe testing before production deployment.

• Lambda function (.NET 8 Native AOT): Took a completed Lambda function from the development environment to production-ready deployment. Native AOT kept cold starts minimal.
• CI/CD in GitHub Actions: Designed and implemented pipelines for build, test, and upload of Lambda artifacts to S3. Added branch protection and code review flows.
• CloudFormation + IAM least privilege: Infrastructure as code with minimal permissions. Each component has exactly the rights it needs, nothing more.
• Three-environment strategy: Separate AWS accounts for test, staging, and production with environment-specific parameters. Changes are validated at each step before they reach production.

Credentials are now rotated automatically every 30 days without operational disruption. The deployment process moved from manual to fully automated with CI/CD.

The security risk dropped from high to minimal. The platform team has a documented deployment sequence and can handle future changes with confidence.