Big data analytics involves processing large amounts of data that cannot be handled by conventional systems. The IBM® BigInsights® platform processes large amounts of data by breaking the computation into smaller tasks that can be distributed onto several nodes. As this platform is shared by users in different roles (developers, analysts, data scientists, and testers), it introduces the challenge of provisioning access and authorization to the cluster and securing the data.
Big data platforms are an amalgamation of several individual components that are still evolving, and are based on the challenges and requirements that are dictated by the open source community. These components are developed in isolation by independent teams with no forethought of integrating them in a secure way, which results in individual components defining and exposing their own security policies for data and access protection. This inherent lack of single security policy enforcement in big data platforms can be challenging and overwhelming.
This IBM Redbooks® Analytics Support web doc introduces a reference security architecture for the IBM BigInsights solution that is in line with current industry practices. It can be used as a reference document for solution architects and solution implementers. This document applies to IBM BigInsights Version 4.2 and later.
Big data analytics involves processing large amounts of data that cannot be handled by conventional systems. The IBM BigInsights® platform processes large amounts of data by breaking the computation into smaller tasks that can be distributed onto several nodes. As this platform is shared by users in different roles (developers, analysts, data scientists, and testers), it introduces the challenge of provisioning access and authorization to the cluster and securing the data.
Big data platforms are an amalgamation of several individual components that are still evolving, and are based on the challenges and requirements that are dictated by the open source community. These components are developed in isolation by independent teams with no forethought of integrating them in a secure way, which results in individual components defining and exposing their own security policies for data and access protection. This inherent lack of single security policy enforcement in big data platforms can be challenging and overwhelming.
This IBM Redbooks® Analytics Support web doc introduces a reference security architecture for the IBM BigInsights solution that is in line with current industry practices. It can be used as a reference document for solution architects and solution implementers. This document applies to IBM BigInsights Version 4.2 and later.
Security aspects to consider when designing the security architecture for IBM BigInsights
Securing an IBM BigInsights cluster involves addressing four main security aspects, which are shown in Figure 1:
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