Sold by: Citadel Security
Deployed on AWS
AWS Free Tier
This product has charges associated with the pre-built security hardening and recurring maintenance. Deploy a Amazon Linux 2023 virtual machine hardened with 300+ security controls to support PCI DSS needs. Save time. Launch secure. Accelerate compliance.
Overview
This Amazon Linux 2023 image is designed for businesses operating under PCI DSS requirements. It is ideal for payment processors, SaaS platforms, and merchants who store or handle cardholder data. The image includes over 300 system-level security controls that reduce your attack surface and make it easier to meet PCI expectations from day one.
Our PCI-focused images are built using a secure and automated process that applies proven security hardening at the OS level. Controls are selected and implemented to enforce secure defaults, restrict access, and meet high-trust requirements. There are no tools or agents pre-installed. You get a clean and secure starting point ready for audit-driven infrastructure.
This is ideal for companies needing secure infrastructure quickly, without spending weeks building and testing their own hardened images. Most default OS images from cloud providers are not secure by default. Our hardened images reduce risk, save time, and help teams pass audits faster. We are a US-based company with over four years of history. All engineering and support are handled by US-based staff and we are trusted by both enterprise and government customers.
Highlights
- Includes over 300 hardened security configurations designed to reduce risk and help meet PCI compliance requirements. You can save weeks of engineering time and get a compliant system in minutes.
- Purpose-built for PCI use cases such as payment platforms and cardholder environments. Our hardened images provide a clean deployment experience with secure defaults baked in.
- Trusted by payment providers and government entities. Our images have powered over a billion compute hours and are backed by a fully US-based team.
Details
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Delivery method
Delivery option
64-bit (x86) Amazon Machine Image (AMI)
Latest version
Operating system
AmazonLinux 2023
Deployed on AWS
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Features and programs
Financing for AWS Marketplace purchases
AWS Marketplace now accepts line of credit payments through the PNC Vendor Finance program. This program is available to select AWS customers in the US, excluding NV, NC, ND, TN, & VT.
Pricing
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.
If you are an AWS Free Tier customer with a free plan, you are eligible to subscribe to this offer. You can use free credits to cover the cost of eligible AWS infrastructure. See AWS Free Tier for more details. If you created an AWS account before July 15th, 2025, and qualify for the Legacy AWS Free Tier, Amazon EC2 charges for Micro instances are free for up to 750 hours per month. See Legacy AWS Free Tier for more details.
Dimension | Cost/hour |
|---|---|
t3a.medium Recommended | $0.32 |
t3.micro | $0.14 |
t2.micro | $0.14 |
r6id.16xlarge | $5.10 |
c6a.4xlarge | $2.40 |
g4ad.2xlarge | $2.40 |
f2.6xlarge | $2.40 |
r5b.16xlarge | $5.10 |
i7i.12xlarge | $2.40 |
m6idn.8xlarge | $2.40 |
Dimensions summary
You pay by the hour for this hardened Amazon Linux 2023 image, billed per running instance. Each dimension maps to a specific EC2 instance type, so your rate follows the instance size and family you launch. Smaller shared instances carry lower hourly rates, while large memory, compute, storage, GPU, and bare-metal instances cost more per hour. Both x86_64 and ARM64 (Graviton) options appear across the families. You are not locked into one size — choose the instance that fits your workload, and the software charge scales with that choice plus standard AWS infrastructure fees.
Top-of-mind questions for buyers
Each hourly unit is one running EC2 instance of the type you launch, running the hardened Amazon Linux 2023 image. The charge covers the PCI-focused, monthly-patched operating-system baseline and US-based product support. Your team still owns application security, networking, identity, logging, and assessor validation.
The software charge meters running instance-hours only. A fully stopped or powered-off instance does not accrue the hourly software fee. Stopped instances may still incur standard AWS storage charges for attached volumes, but those are separate AWS infrastructure fees, not the image software charge.
Your hourly rate follows the specific EC2 instance type you launch, not the architecture alone. Both x86_64 and ARM64 (Graviton) options appear across the instance families. Architecture availability varies by listing, so confirm the exact instance type and its rate on the Marketplace record before launch.
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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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Content disclaimer
Vendors are responsible for their product descriptions and other product content. AWS does not warrant that vendors' product descriptions or other product content are accurate, complete, reliable, current, or error-free.
Delivery details
64-bit (x86) Amazon Machine Image (AMI)
Amazon Machine Image (AMI)
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
This is the first release of the Amazon Linux 2023 PCI-hardened image. All current security patches are applied and over 300 security controls are configured by default. The image has no additional software installed.
Additional details
Usage instructions
- Launch the image inside your secure VPC.
- Scope access to trusted IPs only. Avoid exposing the instance directly to the internet.
- Use AWS Systems Manager Session Manager or connect via VPN if possible.
To connect via SSH: ssh ec2-user@<your-ec2-public-ip>.
Ensure port 22 is open in your security group and locked down to your IP.
No additional steps are required. The system is already fully hardened and ready to use.
Resources
Vendor resources
Support
Vendor support
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 infrastructure support
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.
Similar products
This product has charges associated with the pre-built security hardening and recurring maintenance. Deploy a Amazon Linux 2023 virtual machine hardened with 300+ security controls to support PCI DSS needs. Save time. Launch secure. Accelerate compliance.
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This product has charges associated with the pre-built hardening to the CIS Benchmarks™ and recurring maintenance targeted specifically at GPU optimized AMIs. The CIS Hardened Images® are hardened in accordance with the associated CIS Benchmarks, an industry best practice for secure configuration. Reduce cost, time, and risk by building your AWS solution with CIS AMIs.
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This product has charges associated with it for hardening and maintenance. This Citadel VM is secured using 300+ open source security controls and validated using Citadel Audit.
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