What Is Cloud Security?

Security is on the mind of every business and IT decision-makers. With the average costs of a breach projected to be at $4 million, it is no secret that cybersecurity professionals are always on the lookout for any cyberattack on their organization. 

According to IDC, public cloud spending will amount to nearly $500 billion. The increase can primarily be attributed to the benefits of migrating to the cloud, which include the ability to reduce costs and increase at the same time. 

More specifically, public cloud spending will be geared towards cloud security, which is consists of a plethora of facilities, procedures, technologies, and controls that work together to safeguard cloud-based data, systems, and infrastructures. These security measures are also configured to support regulatory compliance, protect the privacy of customers, and authenticating access to filter traffic. 

Technically, the way cloud security is distributed will rely on the individual cloud provider or the cloud security solutions in place. Nevertheless, the implementation of cloud security methods does not solve security challenges. 

Security threats are becoming more sophisticated, continually evolving, and cloud security is no less at risk than an on-premise environment. High-level security concerns like weak access controls, availability disruptions, and unauthorized data exposure or leaks all affect traditional IT and cloud systems.

Several cloud application security issues may include lack of visibility, lack control of who has access to data, and inability to prevent misuse of information or malicious data. Outlined below is a list of cloud security risks and solutions that every organization should consider in using the cloud. 

1. Lack of Control and Visibility

Perhaps the most significant advantage of cloud-based technology is its ability to manage the resources needed to keep it operating systematically. However, designating the responsibility for daily maintenance of a program may affect the strength of the organization to confirm the effectiveness of their security plans and implement their incident response plans. Other than that, organizations may also struggle in assessing information about their services, users, and data, which are often necessary to determine abnormal use patterns. 

2. Some Cloud Platforms Do Not Adhere to Industry Regulations

Companies are often required to adhere to special regulatory compliance requirements like PCI-DSS, FISMA, GDPR, and HIPAA. Failing to adhere to these standards could lead to fines, censures, and other penalties that negatively affect their operations. Unfortunately, not all cloud service providers are adhering to every industry regulation. 

Using a cloud-based service without assessing it meets the required regulatory standards of the industry can be a significant problem. This risk leaves the organization open to penalties and continuous audits. The most natural solution to this dilemma is to verify with the cloud service provider which regulatory standards they meet to ensure compliance. 

Conclusion

While the cloud has brought progressive tools that have further enhanced the security protocols of every organization, it is still a must for everyone to run a cloud security risk assessment to identify their most significant risks and the impacts of these risks. Through a security risk assessment, organizations can address cloud security challenges and avoid breaches that could cripple their reputation. If you need more information about a cloud security risk assessment for your business, reach out to one of our MicroAge locations!