Kubernetes Secrets Management in 2025 - A Complete Guide (with Best Practices)

Kubernetes Secrets Management in 2025 is a comprehensive guide that provides best practices for managing secrets in Kubernetes. The current state of Kubernetes secrets management has evolved, but not necessarily simplified, due to the widespread adoption of microservices and multi-cloud architectures. A Kubernetes Secret is a way to keep sensitive data separate from application code, and it can be used by mounting them as files or injecting them as environment variables into pods. However, managing secrets directly in K8s can be challenging due to security concerns. The guide recommends using secrets operators like External Secrets Operator (ESO) or native operators like Infisical's operator, which provide a more secure and scalable way of managing secrets. These solutions enforce security best practices by default, automate secret rotation and fetching, and integrate with identity providers. By choosing a solution that enforces security best practices by default while keeping developers productive, the future of K8s secrets management is automated and integrated with existing identity stacks.