---
title: Cloudwatch CloudTrail configuration changes alarm missing
description: Datadog, the leading service for cloud-scale monitoring.
breadcrumbs: >-
  Docs > Datadog Security > Code Security > Infrastructure as Code (IaC)
  Security > IaC Security Rules > Cloudwatch CloudTrail configuration changes
  alarm missing
---

# Cloudwatch CloudTrail configuration changes alarm missing

{% callout %}
# Important note for users on the following Datadog sites: app.ddog-gov.com, us2.ddog-gov.com

{% alert level="danger" %}
This product is not supported for your selected [Datadog site](https://docs.datadoghq.com/getting_started/site.md). ({% placeholder "user-datadog-site-name" /%}).
{% /alert %}

{% /callout %}

## Metadata{% #metadata %}

**Id:** `terraform-aws-cloudwatch-cloudtrail-configuration-changes-alarm-missing` 

**Provider:** AWS

**Platform:** Terraform

**Severity:** Medium

**Category:** Observability

#### Learn More{% #learn-more %}

- [Provider Reference](https://registry.terraform.io/providers/hashicorp/aws/latest/docs/resources/cloudwatch_log_metric_filter#pattern)

### Description{% #description %}

This check ensures that a CloudWatch log metric filter and corresponding alarm are correctly configured to monitor for changes to AWS CloudTrail settings, such as create, update, or delete operations. If the `aws_cloudwatch_metric_alarm` does not reference the proper metric filter (for example, if the `metric_name` is not set to `aws_cloudwatch_log_metric_filter.cis_cloudtrail_config_change_metric_filter.id`, but instead uses an incorrect value), critical modifications to CloudTrail could go undetected. This misconfiguration can lead to a lack of visibility into potentially malicious activities, such as disabling or modifying CloudTrail to conceal unauthorized actions, ultimately undermining auditability and security monitoring.

## Compliant Code Examples{% #compliant-code-examples %}

```terraform
resource "aws_cloudwatch_log_metric_filter" "cis_cloudtrail_config_change_metric_filter" {
  name           = "CIS-CloudTrailChanges"
  pattern        = "{ ($.eventName = CreateTrail) || ($.eventName = UpdateTrail) || ($.eventName = DeleteTrail) || ($.eventName = StartLogging) || ($.eventName = StopLogging) }"
  log_group_name = aws_cloudwatch_log_group.CIS_CloudWatch_LogsGroup.name

  metric_transformation {
    name      = "CIS-CloudTrailChanges"
    namespace = "CIS_Metric_Alarm_Namespace"
    value     = "1"
  }
}

resource "aws_cloudwatch_metric_alarm" "cis_cloudtrail_config_change_cw_alarm" {
  alarm_name                = "CIS-3.5-CloudTrailChanges"
  comparison_operator       = "GreaterThanOrEqualToThreshold"
  evaluation_periods        = "1"
  metric_name               = aws_cloudwatch_log_metric_filter.cis_cloudtrail_config_change_metric_filter.id
  namespace                 = "CIS_Metric_Alarm_Namespace"
  period                    = "300"
  statistic                 = "Sum"
  threshold                 = "1"
  alarm_description         = "Monitoring changes to CloudTrail's configuration will help ensure sustained visibility to activities performed in the AWS account."
  alarm_actions             = [aws_sns_topic.CIS_Alerts_SNS_Topic.arn]
  insufficient_data_actions = []
}
```

## Non-Compliant Code Examples{% #non-compliant-code-examples %}

```terraform
resource "aws_cloudwatch_log_metric_filter" "cis_cloudtrail_config_change_metric_filter" {
  name           = "CIS-CloudTrailChanges"
  pattern        = "{ ($.eventName = CreateTrail) || ($.eventName = UpdateTrail) || ($.eventName = DeleteTrail) || ($.eventName = StartLogging) || ($.eventName = StopLogging) }"
  log_group_name = aws_cloudwatch_log_group.CIS_CloudWatch_LogsGroup.name

  metric_transformation {
    name      = "CIS-CloudTrailChanges"
    namespace = "CIS_Metric_Alarm_Namespace"
    value     = "1"
  }
}

resource "aws_cloudwatch_metric_alarm" "cis_cloudtrail_config_change_cw_alarm" {
  alarm_name                = "CIS-3.5-CloudTrailChanges"
  comparison_operator       = "GreaterThanOrEqualToThreshold"
  evaluation_periods        = "1"
  metric_name               = "XXXX NOT YOUR FILTER XXXX"
  namespace                 = "CIS_Metric_Alarm_Namespace"
  period                    = "300"
  statistic                 = "Sum"
  threshold                 = "1"
  alarm_description         = "Monitoring changes to CloudTrail's configuration will help ensure sustained visibility to activities performed in the AWS account."
  alarm_actions             = [aws_sns_topic.CIS_Alerts_SNS_Topic.arn]
  insufficient_data_actions = []
}
```

```terraform
resource "aws_cloudwatch_log_metric_filter" "cis_unauthorized_api_calls_metric_filter" {
  name           = "CIS-UnauthorizedAPICalls"
  pattern        = "{ ($.errorCode = \"*UnauthorizedOperation\") || ($.errorCode = \"AccessDenied*\") }"
  log_group_name = aws_cloudwatch_log_group.CIS_CloudWatch_LogsGroup.name

  metric_transformation {
    name      = "CIS-UnauthorizedAPICalls"
    namespace = "CIS_Metric_Alarm_Namespace"
    value     = "1"
  }
}

resource "aws_cloudwatch_metric_alarm" "cis_unauthorized_api_calls_cw_alarm" {
  alarm_name                = "CIS-3.1-UnauthorizedAPICalls"
  comparison_operator       = "GreaterThanOrEqualToThreshold"
  evaluation_periods        = "1"
  metric_name               = aws_cloudwatch_log_metric_filter.cis_unauthorized_api_calls_metric_filter.id
  namespace                 = "CIS_Metric_Alarm_Namespace"
  period                    = "300"
  statistic                 = "Sum"
  threshold                 = "1"
  alarm_description         = "Monitoring unauthorized API calls will help reveal application errors and may reduce time to detect malicious activity."
  alarm_actions             = [aws_sns_topic.cis_alerts_sns_topic.arn]
  insufficient_data_actions = []
}
```

```terraform
resource "aws_cloudwatch_log_metric_filter" "cis_cloudtrail_config_change_metric_filter" {
  name           = "CIS-CloudTrailChanges"
  pattern        = "{ ($.eventName = CreateTrail) || ($.eventName = StartLogging) || ($.eventName = StopLogging) }"
  log_group_name = aws_cloudwatch_log_group.CIS_CloudWatch_LogsGroup.name

  metric_transformation {
    name      = "CIS-CloudTrailChanges"
    namespace = "CIS_Metric_Alarm_Namespace"
    value     = "1"
  }
}

resource "aws_cloudwatch_metric_alarm" "cis_cloudtrail_config_change_cw_alarm" {
  alarm_name                = "CIS-3.5-CloudTrailChanges"
  comparison_operator       = "GreaterThanOrEqualToThreshold"
  evaluation_periods        = "1"
  metric_name               = aws_cloudwatch_log_metric_filter.cis_cloudtrail_config_change_metric_filter.id
  namespace                 = "CIS_Metric_Alarm_Namespace"
  period                    = "300"
  statistic                 = "Sum"
  threshold                 = "1"
  alarm_description         = "Monitoring changes to CloudTrail's configuration will help ensure sustained visibility to activities performed in the AWS account."
  alarm_actions             = [aws_sns_topic.CIS_Alerts_SNS_Topic.arn]
  insufficient_data_actions = []
}
```