PCI-DSS Hardened Centos Stream 9

CentOS Stream 9 – PCI-DSS Security Hardened (Azure Optimized)

This Azure Marketplace image provides a PCI-DSS–aligned hardened CentOS Stream 9 virtual machine, optimized for Microsoft Azure. The image is configured with prescriptive operating system security controls designed to support environments that process, store, or transmit payment card data.

CentOS Stream 9 serves as the upstream preview of future RHEL minor releases. This image combines modern Linux capabilities with a security-focused baseline that supports technical requirements commonly assessed during payment card industry security reviews.

PCI-DSS Aligned Security Configuration

• Operating system hardening aligned with PCI-DSS technical control objectives
• Strong authentication and access control enforcement
• Secure password policies and account lockout mechanisms enabled
• SSH configured with secure cryptographic settings and key-based authentication
• Unnecessary services, packages, and network listeners removed or disabled
• Host-based firewall enabled with restrictive inbound traffic rules
• System logging and auditing enabled to support security monitoring and review
• Time synchronization configured to support audit log integrity
• Kernel and network parameters tuned to reduce exposure to common attack vectors

Azure Integration & Optimization

• Azure Linux Agent (waagent) installed and enabled
• Cloud-init support for automated provisioning and configuration
• Compatible with Azure Monitor, Azure Serial Console, and VM extensions
• Optimized for Azure virtual machine performance and reliability

Use Cases

• Payment processing and transaction support systems
• Cardholder data environment (CDE) workloads
• Security-sensitive application servers
• DevSecOps and CI/CD pipelines supporting regulated workloads
• RHEL-compatible enterprise workloads requiring enhanced security controls

Target Audience

• Security and compliance teams
• Cloud and platform engineers
• Organizations operating in regulated or payment-related environments
• ISVs deploying secure Linux workloads on Azure

This image is designed to support PCI-DSS compliance efforts; achieving compliance remains the responsibility of the customer and depends on the overall system architecture, applications, processes, and operational controls.

No operating system license fees apply. Customers pay only for Azure compute, storage, and networking resources consumed.

We understand that reliability and continuity are critical when choosing an AMI provider, especially for production environments. That’s why we want to assure you that we are in this for the long run.

Our team is dedicated to building and maintaining secure, production-ready, and compliance-aligned AMIs that your business can depend on. We have no intention of discontinuing operations or ending support for our hardened images. In fact, we are actively expanding our portfolio and reinvesting in innovation to meet evolving customer needs.

When you choose our AMIs, you’re choosing a trusted partner committed to your long-term success for today, tomorrow, and years from now.

Deploy with confidence on a hardened, production-ready Centos Stream 9 image that delivers the reliability your workloads demand

Disclaimer: Sedetos is an independent third-party. Our offerings are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or officially connected to The CentOS Project