Pod Security Policy (PSP) was a built-in admission controller in Kubernetes used to enforce security policies on pods at the cluster level. It was deprecated in Kubernetes v1.21 and completely removed in v1.25. The functionality provided by PSPs has been replaced by the built-in Pod Security Admission (PSA) controller, which enforces the Pod Security Standards (PSS). Therefore, Pod Security Policy is the direct precursor to the current Pod Security Standards model.

A. Container Runtime Security: This is a broad security domain concerning the container runtime (e.g., containerd, CRI-O), not a specific, deprecated Kubernetes API object that preceded Pod Security Standards.

B. Kubernetes Security Context: A securityContext is a current and valid field in the Pod and Container specifications used to define privilege and access controls. PSS uses these settings for validation, but it is not the predecessor.

C. Container Security Standards: This is a generic phrase and not the official name of the specific Kubernetes feature that was deprecated and replaced by the Pod Security Standards.

1. Kubernetes Documentation

"Pod Security Policy Deprecation": This official blog post explicitly details the deprecation timeline and states

"PodSecurityPolicy is being deprecated in Kubernetes v1.21

and will be removed in v1.25." It discusses the transition to the new built-in solution. (Source: Kubernetes Blog

April 6

2021).

2. Kubernetes Documentation

"Pod Security Admission": The official documentation for the replacement mechanism states

"Pod Security Admission is a built-in admission controller that implements the security controls outlined in the Pod Security Standards. This admission controller is enabled by default... As a replacement for PodSecurityPolicy

it offers a more ergonomic and maintainable approach to enforcing Pod security." (Source: Kubernetes Concepts

Security

Pod Security Admission

Section: "Pod Security Admission").

3. Kubernetes Documentation

"Migrate from PodSecurityPolicy to the Built-In PodSecurity Admission Controller": This guide provides direct instructions for the migration

reinforcing that Pod Security Admission (which enforces PSS) is the successor to Pod Security Policy. (Source: Kubernetes Tasks

Security

"Migrate from PodSecurityPolicy to the Built-In PodSecurity Admission Controller").