SAP Cloud Connector Security: Secure Configurations Made Easy
We’ve been talking about SAP BTP security a lot lately. See:
- Securing SAP BTP – The Foundations: Empowering the Business without Sacrificing Security
- Securing SAP BTP – Vulnerability Management: Enforcing Best Practices for Users & Configurations
- Securing SAP BTP – Threat Monitoring: Detecting Unauthorized Changes and Indicators of Compromise
As we think about securing SAP BTP and its importance in SAP S/4HANA Cloud and RISE with SAP landscapes, we have to also consider SAP Cloud Connector. These two components go hand-in-hand and their usage is very intertwined, so any BTP security efforts must also extend to Cloud Connector.
What is SAP Cloud Connector?
Put simply, Cloud Connector is used to facilitate and secure communications between SAP BTP and on-premises/internal systems (both SAP and non-SAP). Securing these connections is essential to protect the large amount of often sensitive or proprietary information that is being exchanged. This has made Cloud Connector an essential asset within SAP cloud landscapes, used by virtually every organization running SAP BTP.
Why Is SAP Cloud Connector Security So Important?
Given the purpose of Cloud Connector – creating a secure tunnel between BTP and other systems – it is essential that it is configured correctly. You don’t want it to have insecure configurations that could undermine its ability to create that secure tunnel and protect the data being exchanged.
Challenges to Enforcing Secure Configurations for SAP Cloud Connector
Securely configuring Cloud Connector is clearly important, but unfortunately, it can also be challenging. It’s also important to remember that under the shared security model of RISE with SAP, this is the responsibility of the customer organization. What we hear most often from customers is that the difficulties here are two-fold:
- They need to know what good looks like – How should Cloud Connector be configured? What are the security best practices here? SAP has released some guidance on this (e.g., SAP Security Baseline Template, SAP BTP Security Recommendations), but this of course requires time and resources from the customer to find, read, and understand that documentation.
- They need to know if their configurations are aligned with those best practices – From there, of course you need to see if you’re actually following those best practices. This requires manually checking each Cloud Connector instance, which takes time and could lead to things being missed due to human error. Also, you would need access to Cloud Connector itself, which security teams might not have.
Securing Your SAP Cloud Connector Just Got a Lot Easier with Onapsis
Thankfully, Onapsis takes care of both of these challenges and helps you enforce secure configurations for SAP Cloud Connector while saving you significant time and resources compared to manual efforts.
Our Assess for BTP offering provides automated vulnerability scans for both SAP BTP and Cloud Connector, so you can easily evaluate your assets against the security best practices advised by SAP, as well as advanced recommendations from the Onapsis Research Labs. Scan results include risk-based analysis and detailed explanations to guide prioritization and remediation efforts. Plus, the automated scans make it easy for you to regularly evaluate your configurations to make sure you maintain alignment over time.
Ensuring your SAP Cloud Connector is configured correctly is just one aspect of securing SAP BTP. Onapsis is proud to be the only vendor that supports security of SAP BTP (including Cloud Connector) and in BTP. We help you secure BTP itself, with robust vulnerability management and threat monitoring capabilities, and the code being written on BTP, with comprehensive application security testing that integrates into BTP development environments.
FAQ’s
What is SAP Cloud Connector used for?
SAP Cloud Connector enables secure communication between SAP Business Technology Platform (BTP) and on-premises systems. It acts as a bridge, allowing organizations to safely integrate cloud and internal SAP or non-SAP applications.
Why is SAP Cloud Connector security critical in cloud environments?
Because Cloud Connector facilitates data transfer between cloud and internal systems, any misconfiguration can expose sensitive business data. Ensuring proper security settings is essential to maintaining trust, compliance, and business continuity.
Who is responsible for securing SAP Cloud Connector under RISE with SAP?
Under the shared security model of RISE with SAP, it is the customer’s responsibility to configure and maintain SAP Cloud Connector securely. SAP manages infrastructure, but configuration and security controls fall on the customer.
What challenges do organizations face when securing SAP Cloud Connector?
The most common challenges include understanding what secure configuration looks like and validating whether their Cloud Connector settings follow SAP and industry best practices. Manual reviews are time-consuming and prone to error.
How does Onapsis help improve SAP Cloud Connector security?
Onapsis provides automated scans via its Assess for BTP solution to validate configurations against SAP best practices and Onapsis Research Labs guidance. This saves time, reduces risk, and ensures consistent SAP cloud connector security across environments.