How to Investigate Unauthorized API Access Alerts in AWS CloudWatch

If you receive CloudWatch alerts about unauthorized API access, you can investigate the source of these alerts by following these steps: Log into your AWS Console Navigate to CloudWatch Logs Insights in the region where the alerts are occurring Select the CloudTrail log group Use the following filter pattern to search for unauthorized access events: {($.errorCode = *UnauthorizedOperation) || ($.errorCode = AccessDenied*)} Common causes of these alerts include: IAM roles with insufficient permissions Explicit denies in session policies Services attempting to access resources without proper authorization If you determine that the unauthorized access attempts are from legitimate AWS services or roles that should have access, you'll need to update the relevant IAM policies to grant the necessary permissions. Note: Before modifying any IAM policies, carefully review the access requirements and follow the principle of least privilege to ensure you're only granting necessary permissions.