AWSOverview
Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) supports encryption at rest when using the Elastic Block Store(EBS) service. While disabled by default, forcing encryption at EBS volume creation is supported.
Default EBS volume encryption only applies to newly created EBS volumes. Existing EBS volumes are not converted automatically.
Encrypting data at rest reduces the likelihood that it is unintentionally exposed and can nullify the impact of disclosure if the encryption remains unbroken.
Remediation guidance
From Console
- Open the Amazon EC2 console using EC2
- Under Account attributes, click
EBS encryption. - Click Manage.
- Click the
Enablecheckbox. - Click
Update EBS encryption. - Repeat for every region requiring the change.
From Command Line
Enable default EBS encryption for the affected region:
aws ec2 enable-ebs-encryption-by-default \
--region {{asset.region}}
Verify that encryption by default is now enabled:
aws ec2 get-ebs-encryption-by-default \
--region {{asset.region}}
Multiple Remediation Paths
AWS
SERVICE-WIDE (RECOMMENDED when many resources are affected): Deploy centralized guardrails and remediation using AWS Config Conformance Packs and (if applicable) AWS Organizations SCPs.
aws configservice put-organization-conformance-pack --organization-conformance-pack-name <pack-name> --template-s3-uri s3://<bucket>/<template>.yaml
ASSET-LEVEL: Apply the resource-specific remediation steps above to only the affected assets.
PREVENTIVE: Add CI/CD policy checks (CloudFormation/Terraform validation) before deployment to prevent recurrence.
References for Service-Wide Patterns
- AWS Config Conformance Packs: https://docs.aws.amazon.com/config/latest/developerguide/conformance-packs.html
- AWS Organizations SCP examples: https://docs.aws.amazon.com/organizations/latest/userguide/orgs_manage_policies_scps_examples.html
Operational Rollout Workflow
Use this sequence to reduce risk and avoid repeated drift.
1. Contain at Service-Wide Scope First (Recommended)
- AWS: deploy/adjust organization conformance packs and policy guardrails.
aws configservice put-organization-conformance-pack --organization-conformance-pack-name <pack-name> --template-s3-uri s3://<bucket>/<template>.yaml
2. Remediate Existing Affected Assets
- Execute the control-specific Console/CLI steps documented above for each flagged resource.
- Prioritize internet-exposed and production assets first.
3. Validate and Prevent Recurrence
- Re-scan after each remediation batch.
- Track exceptions with owner and expiry date.
- Add preventive checks in IaC/CI pipelines.
Query logic
These are the stored checks tied to this control.
EBS encryption by default is enabled
Connectors
Covered asset types
Expected check: eq []
{ebsSettings(where: { encryptedByDefault: false }) {...AssetFragment}}
