Cloud Log Gaps? Network Telemetry Delivers Reliable Security Visibility

Cloud Log Limitations Create Security Blind Spots

Cloud environments increasingly face visibility challenges as infrastructure scales and evolves. While cloud logs serve as a primary security data source, they often prove inconsistent or incomplete—leaving security teams with critical blind spots. Corelight, a network security analytics provider, demonstrates how network-level telemetry can deliver more reliable visibility when cloud logs fall short.

The Problem with Cloud Logs

Cloud logs, though essential for monitoring and incident response, frequently exhibit gaps due to:

• Dynamic scaling – Rapidly changing cloud workloads may not generate logs uniformly.
• Configuration drift – Inconsistent logging policies across services or regions.
• Log retention limits – Short retention windows or cost-driven log pruning.
• Vendor-specific formats – Inconsistent log structures complicate correlation and analysis.

These limitations hinder threat detection, forensic investigations, and compliance efforts, particularly in complex, multi-cloud environments.

Network Telemetry as a Reliable Alternative

Unlike cloud logs, network telemetry captures real-time traffic data at the packet or flow level, offering:

• Consistent visibility – Independent of cloud provider logging configurations.
• Comprehensive coverage – Captures lateral movement, data exfiltration, and encrypted traffic metadata.
• Forensic integrity – Immutable records of network activity, even if logs are altered or deleted.
• Cross-cloud correlation – Unified visibility across hybrid and multi-cloud architectures.

Corelight’s approach leverages open-source Zeek (formerly Bro) to generate high-fidelity network logs, enriching them with context for security operations. This method ensures security teams maintain visibility even when cloud logs are unreliable or incomplete.

Impact on Security Operations

The reliance on cloud logs alone introduces risks, including:

• Delayed threat detection – Gaps in logging may allow attackers to operate undetected.
• Incomplete forensic data – Missing logs hinder root cause analysis and incident response.
• Compliance challenges – Inconsistent logging may violate regulatory requirements for audit trails.

By integrating network telemetry, organizations can mitigate these risks, ensuring continuous monitoring and actionable threat intelligence regardless of cloud log fidelity.

Recommendations for Security Teams

To address cloud log limitations, Corelight recommends:

1. Augment cloud logs with network telemetry – Deploy sensors at critical network chokepoints to capture traffic data.
2. Standardize logging policies – Enforce consistent logging configurations across cloud providers.
3. Leverage open-source tools – Use Zeek or similar frameworks to generate and enrich network logs.
4. Correlate data sources – Combine cloud logs, network telemetry, and endpoint data for holistic visibility.
5. Monitor for logging gaps – Implement alerts for missing or anomalous log generation.

Conclusion

As cloud environments grow in complexity, security teams must move beyond reliance on cloud logs alone. Network telemetry provides a resilient, provider-agnostic source of truth, enabling better threat detection, incident response, and compliance. By adopting a layered visibility strategy, organizations can close critical blind spots and strengthen their security posture.