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security for production agents
Why we recommend Vertex Agent Engine for production deployments. We support self-hosted and low-code when appropriate.
vertex agent engine vs self-hosted low-code
| security dimension | vertex agent engine | self-hosted low-code |
|---|---|---|
| identity & access | IAM, per-workspace service accounts | App-level credentials |
| network boundary | VPC, Private Service Connect, perimeter control | Public ingress common |
| keys & secrets | Secret Manager, rotation policies, Kyber-safe TLS | Env vars or Vault add-ons |
| data controls | Regions, data residency, CMEK, DLP options | Depends on ops maturity |
| audit & forensics | Cloud Audit Logs, Cloud Logging, SIEM export | Plugins vary |
| supply chain | Artifact Registry, Binary Authorization, SLSA provenance | Manual controls |
| llm safety | Evals, guardrails, rollback, staging gates | Custom or third-party |
Conclusion: Production agents benefit from Vertex defaults and controls. We still deliver self-hosted or low-code when the risk profile and budget fit.
why vertex for production agents
security by default
IAM policies, VPC-SC patterns, CMEK, and audit logs are built-in. No configuration drift from manual setups.
compliance ready
HIPAA, SOC 2, PCI DSS, and FedRAMP High compliance inherited from Google Cloud platform certifications.
supply chain integrity
Artifact Registry with vulnerability scanning, Binary Authorization for admission control, SLSA provenance tracking.
llm-specific guardrails
Built-in evaluation frameworks, staging environments, rollback capabilities, and safety filters for production agents.
observability & forensics
Cloud Logging, Cloud Monitoring, Error Reporting, and Cloud Trace provide full visibility into agent behavior.
managed scaling
Auto-scaling, multi-region failover, and load balancing managed by Google Cloud—no ops overhead.
when self-hosted low-code fits
Self-hosted low-code platforms like n8n are effective for:
- Integration glue: Connecting APIs, webhooks, and simple workflows without complex logic.
- Quick wins: Non-critical automations where downtime is acceptable and data sensitivity is low.
- Air-gapped environments: Fully on-premises deployments where external cloud services are prohibited.
- Tight budgets: Teams with strong DevOps capabilities willing to manage their own infrastructure.
We pair them often: n8n for orchestration glue, Vertex Agent Engine for the agent brain. This gives you visual workflow building for integrations while maintaining security and guardrails for AI reasoning.
detailed security rationale
1. identity & access management
Vertex: Fine-grained IAM policies per service account. Workload Identity binds Kubernetes pods to GCP service accounts. Least privilege by default.
Self-hosted: Application-level credentials (API keys, basic auth). Often stored in environment variables or external vaults. Risk of over-permissioned tokens.
2. network security
Vertex: Private Service Connect for private endpoints. VPC Service Controls for data perimeters. Cloud Armor for DDoS protection.
Self-hosted: Typically exposed via public ingress. Requires manual firewall rules, reverse proxies, and SSL certificate management.
3. secrets management
Vertex: Secret Manager with automatic rotation, audit logging, and IAM-based access. Secrets never in code or configs.
Self-hosted: Requires external tools (HashiCorp Vault, AWS Secrets Manager). Often fall back to .env files or Kubernetes secrets (base64, not encrypted at rest).
4. audit & compliance
Vertex: Cloud Audit Logs capture every API call. Automatically exported to SIEM. Immutable, tamper-proof logs.
Self-hosted: Logging depends on application implementation. Easy to miss events or have gaps. Requires manual setup for centralized logging.
vertex agent engine gives you iam, vpc-sc patterns, cmek, audit logs, and supply-chain controls by default
Self-hosted low-code is effective for glue work and small automations. For production agents that handle sensitive data, we recommend Vertex to reduce operational risk. We still support self-hosted when it fits the risk and budget.