ModelArmor Overview

ModelArmor is a Zero Trust security solution purpose-built to protect AI/ML/LLM workloads from runtime threats. It safeguards against the unique risks of agentic AI systems and untrusted models by sandboxing deployments and enforcing granular runtime policies.

ModelArmor uses KubeArmor as a sandboxing engine to ensure that the untrusted models execution is constrained and within required checks. AI/ML Models are essentially processes and allowing untrusted models to execute in AI environments have significant risks such as possibility of cryptomining attacks leveraging GPUs, remote command injections, etc. KubeArmor's preemptive mitigation mechanism provides a suitable framework for constraining the execution environment of models.

ModelArmor can be used to enforce security policies on the model execution environment.

Why ModelArmor?

ModelArmor enables secure deployment of agentic AI applications and ML models, addressing critical security gaps that traditional guardrails and static scanning cannot solve.

It is designed for:

• Agentic AI workloads using autonomous, tool-using agents.

• ML pipelines importing untrusted models from public repositories.

• Environments where guardrails alone are not sufficient.

ModelArmor protects the entire AI lifecycle, from development to deployment, using sandboxing and policy enforcement to neutralize malicious behavior at runtime.

The Problem: Security Risks in Agentic AI

1. Arbitrary Code Execution

Agentic AI systems can execute arbitrary system commands due to their autonomy and access to tools.

• Prompt engineering can bypass LLM guardrails.

• Attackers can instruct agents to run harmful commands, download malware, or scan networks.

2. Model Supply Chain Attacks

Malicious models uploaded to public repositories (e.g., Hugging Face) can contain embedded payloads.

• Loading such models allows hidden code execution, leading to system compromise and C&C communication.

3. Prompt Injection Attacks

Crafted prompts can manipulate the agent into performing unauthorized actions:

• Reading sensitive files (e.g., /root/.aws/credentials).

• Installing tools (apk add nmap) or scanning networks.

• Fetching and executing external scripts.

Traditional container security cannot detect these because they exploit application behavior, not the container itself.

The Solution

Sandboxing Agentic AI

ModelArmor isolates agentic AI apps and ML workloads at runtime, blocking unauthorized actions even if guardrails or code reviews are bypassed.

Zero Trust Policy Enforcement

Define fine-grained security policies to:

• Restrict file system access (e.g., block /root/.aws/credentials).

• Control process execution (allow only trusted binaries).

• Limit network activity (disable raw sockets, ICMP, or outbound traffic).

Automated Red Teaming

Simulate adversarial scenarios like malicious model imports and prompt injections to identify vulnerabilities pre-deployment.

Protection Across the Stack

ModelArmor works across frameworks and environments:

• Supports any language runtime or AI framework.

• Requires no code changes to your application.

• Lightweight and cost-efficient, avoiding the overhead of MicroVMs or full isolation environments.

TensorFlow Based Use Cases

FGSM Adversarial Input Attack

An FGSM attack manipulates input data by adding imperceptible noise, creating adversarial examples that force the TensorFlow model to misclassify (e.g., predicting “5” for an image of “2”).

Traditional container security fails here because the model and container remain unchanged; the attack happens through crafted input.

ModelArmor Protection:

• Proactively simulates adversarial attacks using Automated Red Teaming.

• Secures model behavior with input validation and anomaly detection, akin to an LLM Prompt Firewall for ML workloads.

• Protects against sophisticated input-level manipulations.

▶️ Watch FGSM Attack Video

Keras Model Injection Attack

A deployed TensorFlow model in a Docker container is vulnerable to compromise via a malicious Keras Lambda layer. This attack involves:

• Installing Python inside the container or

• Copying malicious scripts (e.g., into /tmp) to execute unauthorized system commands.

ModelArmor Protection:

• Blocks unauthorized installations (e.g., Python) and filesystem modifications (e.g., writing to /tmp).

• Uses Automated Red Teaming to detect such vulnerabilities pre-deployment.

• Isolates workloads (like TensorFlow) with Sandboxing Agentic AI to prevent code injection.

▶️ Watch Keras Inject Video

Securing NVIDIA NIM

📄 View PDF: Securing_NVIDIA_NIM.pdf