This product has charges associated with the pre-built security hardening and recurring maintenance. Deploy a Debian 12 virtual machine with 300+ security controls already applied. Start secure. Stay secure. Save weeks of work.
This Debian 12 image is a hardened virtual machine configured with over 300 security controls designed to protect cloud-based workloads from the start. Ideal for companies operating in regulated or sensitive environments, this image gives teams a secure and production-ready foundation out of the box.
Our hardened images are built using proprietary internal pipelines that automate and validate the implementation of critical security controls. Each control is carefully selected to reduce attack surface, enforce secure defaults, and help teams meet internal or external compliance expectations. No tools are pre-installed. The image is clean, consistent, and easy to integrate into any environment.
Use cases include deploying workloads in healthcare, finance, government, SaaS platforms, or any application where security is a priority. Default cloud OS images offer little to no security by default. Our hardened images save engineering teams weeks of effort, reduce risk from misconfiguration, and accelerate your ability to launch in secure environments. We are a US-based company with over four years of operation, trusted by enterprises and government agencies. All engineering and support work is performed by US-based employees.
Highlights
Over 300 security controls are pre-applied to the base image to reduce vulnerabilities, enforce strong defaults, and simplify compliance. This saves teams weeks of manual effort and ensures consistency across deployments.
Every image is built through our internal security pipeline and validated for integrity and reliability. You can deploy in minutes with confidence that your base operating system is secure and ready for production use.
Backed by billions of compute hours and trusted by Fortune 500 and government teams. Our hardened images are the secure foundation for mission-critical workloads in regulated environments.
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Pricing is based on actual usage, with charges varying according to how much you consume. Subscriptions have no end date and may be canceled any time. Alternatively, you can pay upfront for a contract, which typically covers your anticipated usage for the contract duration. Any usage beyond contract will incur additional usage-based costs.
Additional AWS infrastructure costs may apply. Use the AWS Pricing Calculator to estimate your infrastructure costs.
You pay by the hour for this hardened Debian 12 image running on ARM64 (Graviton) instances. Each dimension maps to a specific AWS instance type, so your rate follows the size and family you launch. Options span general-purpose (m-series, t4g, a1), compute-optimized (c-series), memory-optimized (r-series, x-series), storage-optimized (i-series, im4gn, is4gen), and graphics (g5g) families. Sizes range from nano and medium up to metal and 48xlarge. Larger instances cost more per hour. You pay only for the hours each instance runs, with no upfront commitment.
Top-of-mind questions for buyers
What does one hour of billing cover for a given instance dimension?
Each dimension maps to one AWS ARM64 (Graviton) instance type. You pay the listed hourly software rate for every clock-hour that instance runs. The rate reflects the size and family you launch, so a larger instance carries a higher hourly rate than a smaller one in the same family.
Am I charged the software fee when an instance is stopped or paused?
The hourly software rate meters running time only. A fully stopped instance stops accruing the software charge. Stopped instances may still incur underlying AWS storage fees for attached volumes, but those are separate AWS infrastructure charges, not the hardened Debian 12 image fee.
What do I actually receive with this hardened image beyond the operating system?
You get a PCI-focused Debian 12 configuration baseline for ARM64, refreshed monthly through a patch cycle with an expedited critical-update path. A per-image evidence pack is published where available. Your team still owns application security, cloud architecture, identity, networking, logging, and assessor validation.
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Vendor refund policy
Refunds are not available. Billing will be assessed per the standard billing terms of the applicable cloud service provider.
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An AMI is a virtual image that provides the information required to launch an instance. Amazon EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud) instances are virtual servers on which you can run your applications and workloads, offering varying combinations of CPU, memory, storage, and networking resources. You can launch as many instances from as many different AMIs as you need.
Version release notes
Monthly security + OS updates - June 2026
Additional details
Usage instructions
Connect over SSH using the key pair selected at launch. The default user is shown above. See the listing's usage instructions for full details.
Support is part of what you get with a Citadel image, and it comes from a US-based team that works on these builds every day. Email support@citadelpci.com with anything - choosing the right image, how the hardening behaves, patching and releases, evidence for a PCI DSS review, or a question you are not sure who else to ask. We read every message, and we would much rather you ask than guess. More about how we work with customers:
AWS Support is a one-on-one, fast-response support channel that is staffed 24x7x365 with experienced and technical support engineers. The service helps customers of all sizes and technical abilities to successfully utilize the products and features provided by Amazon Web Services.
This product has charges associated with the pre-configured security setup, including continuous image maintenance. Deploy a security-hardened Debian 12 virtual machine configured with over 200 controls out of the box, optimized for secure workloads.
This product has charges associated with it for providing seller premium support. The Debian 12 instance is pre-configured and hardened to the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) Security Technical Implementation Guide (STIG) standard, delivering enhanced security over a baseline image. Benefit from a fully maintained hardened image with regular STIG updates, security patches, and hotfixes, along with limited premium OS support to assist with troubleshooting, optimization, and compliance guidance. This makes it an ideal choice for companies that require a secure, compliance-ready, production-quality OS backed by expert assistance.
This product has charges associated with it for providing seller premium support. The Debian 12 instance is a secure operating system designed for reliability and compliance in production environments. Benefit from a fully maintained image with regular security patches and hotfixes, along with limited premium OS support to assist with troubleshooting, optimization, and compliance guidance. This makes it an ideal choice for companies that need a trusted, production-ready OS backed by expert assistance.
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