How should the credential rotation strategy be formulated?

Formulating a credential rotation strategy involves systematically updating sensitive credentials (e.g., passwords, API keys, certificates) to minimize security risks from compromise. Here’s how to approach it:

1. Assess Risk & Sensitivity

Identify credentials based on their access level and criticality. High-risk credentials (e.g., database admin passwords, cloud service API keys) require more frequent rotation.

2. Define Rotation Frequency

• Short-lived credentials: Rotate every 30–90 days for high-risk assets.
• Long-lived credentials: Rotate quarterly or semi-annually for low-risk systems.
• Event-driven rotation: Rotate immediately after suspected compromise, employee offboarding, or role changes.

3. Automate Rotation

Use tools or scripts to automate the process, reducing human error. For example:

• Cloud services: Use Tencent Cloud Secrets Manager to automatically rotate secrets (e.g., database credentials, API keys) on a schedule or via API triggers.
• IAM roles: Rotate access keys for cloud services (e.g., Tencent Cloud CAM) periodically.

4. Enforce Least Privilege

Ensure credentials have minimal required permissions. Rotate and audit them to prevent over-permissioned access.

5. Monitor & Audit

Log all rotation events and monitor for unauthorized access attempts. Tencent Cloud CloudAudit can track credential usage and changes.

Example

For a Tencent Cloud API key used in a production environment:

1. Generate the key via CAM.
2. Rotate every 60 days using a scheduled script or Tencent Cloud Secrets Manager.
3. Revoke old keys immediately after rotation.
4. Audit access logs to detect misuse.

By combining automation, monitoring, and least privilege, you reduce the attack surface while maintaining operational efficiency.