Cloud Security Alliance Issues Paper Detailing Unique Challenges and Risks Presented by Use of Large Language Models (LLMs)

Guide details general design principles and best practices related to authorization concerns

SEATTLE – Aug. 14, 2024 – Securing LLM Backed Systems: Essential Authorization Practices, the latest report from the Cloud Security Alliance (CSA), the world’s leading organization dedicated to defining standards, certifications, and best practices to help ensure a secure cloud computing environment, examines the special considerations that system architects and engineers are likely to encounter when working with Large Language Models (LLMs). Drafted by the AI Technology and Risk Working Group, the guide provides an overview of design patterns and best practices for systems and highlights some of the concerns unique to software systems that do not exist in traditional architectures.

With the goal of helping people make informed choices regarding the unique authorization challenges that arise when building systems that leverage LLMs, the paper offers practical advice on control implementation and how to best assess the secure design of products that utilize LLMs to deliver service. Among the architecture design patterns covered are: Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG), RAG access using either a vector or relational database, RAG via API calls to external systems, LLM systems writing and executing code, and LLM-backed autonomous agents. The guide discusses recommendations, considerations, and pitfalls for each pattern to help system architects effectively navigate trade-offs.

“As LLM technology evolves, sharing knowledge and experiences within the community is crucial. A collaborative approach, such as that offered in this report, will help harness the full potential of LLMs without sacrificing high security and authorization standards,” said Laura Voicu, a lead author of the paper and member of the working group. “It's our hope that this guide will enable system designers to securely build systems utilizing the powerful flexibility this new class of tools offers.”

The guide also introduces several components essential for LLM-backed systems:

• Vector databases, specialized for managing high-dimensional data vectors, and which are becoming essential for retrieval and processing in AI systems;
• Orchestrators, which coordinate LLM inputs and outputs and manage interactions with other services while mitigating risks like prompt injection;
• LLM caches, which speed up responses but require control checks to prevent unauthorized access; and
• Validators, which add a defense layer against attacks, although primary protection should come from deterministic authorization.

“Many of the designers building these systems are at the frontier of integrating LLMs into distributed systems. As we gain more experience and our collective knowledge about the space grows, what we consider to be best practices will change so it’s critical to stay on top of the latest developments in the space,” said Nate Lee, a lead author of the paper and a member of the working group. “The state-of-the-art is moving at a breakneck pace, and what was once a best practice is likely to be tomorrow's legacy pattern.”

Download the full report.

About Cloud Security Alliance
The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) is the world’s leading organization dedicated to defining and raising awareness of best practices to help ensure a secure cloud computing environment. CSA harnesses the subject matter expertise of industry practitioners, associations, governments, and its corporate and individual members to offer cloud security-specific research, education, training, certification, events, and products. CSA's activities, knowledge, and extensive network benefit the entire community impacted by cloud — from providers and customers to governments, entrepreneurs, and the assurance industry — and provide a forum through which different parties can work together to create and maintain a trusted cloud ecosystem. For further information, visit us at www.cloudsecurityalliance.org, and follow us on Twitter @cloudsa.

Media Contacts
Kristina Rundquist
ZAG Communications for the CSA
[email protected]