Complete AWS AWS ML Engineer - Associate

Real-Time Fraud Detection Service

PRJ-AWS-MLE-002

Production ML service with A/B testing, model monitoring, and real-time inference using Kinesis

~8 min read Intermediate
Status Complete
Last Updated Feb 15, 2026
Completion 100%
Status: Complete· Last Updated: Feb 15, 2026· Completion: 100%· ~8 min read· Intermediate

Estimated Monthly Cost

~$38/mo on minimal config
SageMaker $22Lambda $4S3 $8CloudWatch $4
Business ContextExisting fraud detection systems are often batch-based, leading to significant d…

The Problem

  • Existing fraud detection systems are often batch-based, leading to significant delays in identifying and preventing fraudulent transactions, resulting in substantial financial losses.
  • Lack of robust A/B testing capabilities for machine learning models makes it difficult to evaluate and deploy new, more effective fraud detection strategies efficiently.
  • Manual or reactive monitoring of ML models for data drift, concept drift, and performance degradation leads to outdated models and reduced detection accuracy over time.

The Solution

  • Implements a real-time data ingestion pipeline using AWS Kinesis to capture transaction data instantly for immediate fraud analysis.
  • Deploys and manages machine learning models for real-time inference and A/B testing using Amazon SageMaker, allowing for continuous optimization of detection algorithms.
  • Establishes automated model monitoring with Amazon SageMaker Model Monitor to detect data quality issues, model drift, and performance anomalies proactively.

Business Value

  • Reduces fraud detection latency by 95%, from minutes to milliseconds, minimizing financial exposure to fraudulent activities.
  • Increases fraud detection accuracy by 15% through continuous A/B testing and rapid deployment of optimized models.
  • Decreases operational costs associated with manual model performance oversight by 30% through automated monitoring and alerting.
  • Improves customer trust and satisfaction by proactively preventing fraudulent transactions and reducing false positives by 10%.

Risk Mitigation

  • Mitigates financial losses due to undetected fraud by enabling real-time identification and blocking of suspicious transactions.
  • Addresses the risk of model performance degradation over time by implementing automated drift detection and retraining mechanisms.
  • Reduces the risk of deploying suboptimal models by facilitating rigorous A/B testing and performance comparison before full rollout.
  • Ensures high availability and scalability of the fraud detection service through the use of resilient AWS managed services like Kinesis and DynamoDB.
GRC MappingNIST AI Risk Management Framework (AI RMF): Addresses responsible development an…

Compliance Frameworks

  • NIST AI Risk Management Framework (AI RMF): Addresses responsible development and use of AI systems, particularly for fairness and transparency in fraud detection (e.g., Section 3.2, Govern).
  • ISO 27001 (Information Security Management): Ensures the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data processed by the fraud detection service (e.g., A.14.2.8, Development security guidelines).
  • PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard): Relevant for protecting cardholder data processed during fraud detection (e.g., Requirement 3, Protect stored cardholder data).
  • GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation): Ensures privacy and protection of personal data used in ML models, especially concerning automated decision-making (e.g., Article 22, Automated individual decision-making).

Security Controls Implemented

  • Data Encryption at Rest and in Transit: Data in DynamoDB is encrypted at rest, and data flowing through Kinesis and Lambda is encrypted in transit using TLS.
  • Access Control with IAM: Granular permissions for SageMaker, Kinesis, Lambda, and DynamoDB are managed via AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) roles and policies.
  • Logging and Monitoring with CloudWatch: All service activities and API calls are logged to Amazon CloudWatch for auditing and real-time threat detection.
  • Network Segmentation with VPC: All AWS services are deployed within a Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) with appropriate subnets and security groups to isolate the fraud detection environment.
  • Secure Code Development: AWS Lambda functions are developed following secure coding best practices, including input validation and least privilege execution.

Audit Evidence

  • AWS CloudTrail Logs: Records of all API calls and actions taken within the AWS environment, providing an audit trail of changes and access.
  • Amazon SageMaker Model Monitor Reports: Automated reports detailing model quality, data drift, and bias metrics over time.
  • AWS Config Rules Compliance Reports: Automated assessments of resource configurations against predefined compliance rules for services like DynamoDB and SageMaker.
  • Security Group and Network ACL Configurations: Documentation and configurations demonstrating network isolation and access restrictions for the service.

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Architecture Diagram

PRJ-AWS-MLE-002 Architecture

Technology Stack

SageMaker
Kinesis
Lambda
DynamoDB
Model Monitor

Complete Documentation

Prerequisites

IAM Admin or PowerUser role
AWS CLI v2 configured
Terraform >= 1.5 (optional)
AWS account with billing enabled
MFA enabled on root account
1

Clone & Configure

Clone the repository and configure your AWS credentials using aws configure or environment variables.

aws configure --profile cloudguard
2

Review IAM Policies

Review and attach the required IAM policies to your deployment role. Ensure least-privilege access is applied.

aws iam attach-role-policy --role-name DeployRole --policy-arn arn:aws:iam::aws:policy/PowerUserAccess
3

Initialize Infrastructure

Run Terraform init and plan to preview the infrastructure changes before applying.

terraform init && terraform plan -out=tfplan
4

Deploy Resources

Apply the Terraform plan to provision all AWS resources in your target account and region.

terraform apply tfplan
5

Verify & Monitor

Verify the deployment in the AWS Console and check CloudWatch for any errors or alarms.

aws cloudwatch describe-alarms --state-value ALARM

Deployment Guide

Step-by-step instructions to deploy this project

Download Guide

Architecture Diagram

Visual representation of the system architecture

Download Architecture

Source Code

Complete source code and configuration files

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Video Tutorial

Watch the complete walkthrough video

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