Any practice involving safeguarding a company’s cloud data is called cloud data security.
The data can be located anywhere, it could be in motion or rest, or it could be managed by a third party externally or internally by a company team.
There’s a growing need to protect data as more of it is being stored on the cloud. More companies are building their data centers.
It’s estimated that close to 73% of companies are invested in cloud infrastructure and applications and an additional 17% is likely to make the transition within a year.
In this post by SPOPLI Web Development and Services, we look at why companies should take data security seriously and what measures they can take to ensure cloud protection.
Cloud Security Issues Span the Globe
Almost all companies around the globe are collecting huge amounts of data such as customer data, confidential information, financial information, and all kinds of random unimportant stuff.
And, a larger portion of that data is being stored in the cloud in myriad different places such as private, hybrid, public clouds, and Saas storage environments.
With this new trend, companies are realizing that when it comes to securing data scattered across multiple locations and environments, it can be rather complicated and tricky.
Other than that, there’s always a possibility of security-related challenges such as:
- Theft/loss of sensitive data
- Malware propagation
- Security breach
- Application vulnerability
It’s because of this that almost all cybersecurity professionals give major consideration to cloud security.
Because it’s such a global issue, there is a strong need for companies to offer protection against:
- data leakage and loss,
- confidentiality breach,
- threats to data privacy
According to an analysis, the total market for information security is predicted to hit the $170 Billion mark by 2022
Security Challenges
Most cloud systems (although complex and sophisticated) deploy tight, built-in security.
However, despite all the measures in the world, even the most robust systems can fall prey to user errors and other security threats.
There are myriad security challenges that face the world of cloud computing and storage. Let’s take a look at them:
1. Сloud Storage Misconfiguration
Unsecure cloud storage is prone to regular attacks and data stealing. One of the classic examples of one such instance is the Amazon S3 server that caused more than 36 thousand US customer records to leak in the year 2020.
There’s a ton of tools available at hackers’ disposal. They know exactly how to exploit misconfigured environments in a cloud setting.
With proper access management, companies can enhance cloud security to avoid instances of data leakage.
2. Inadequate Control
If you opt for a private cloud environment, then you will get only limited capabilities in terms of control and access visibility.
Therefore, before going for one, you must get to know the kind of control you will get over the environment so it’s easier to integrate it into the company’s work structure.
In the absence of adequate control, you might have a hard time accessing patterns and analyzing pertinent information.
3. Vulnerable APIs
One of the most frequent targets of sensitive information is – insecure APIs. That’s because almost 70% of businesses would have their APIs made public.
The reason for that is it helps third-party developers and business partners to embed the software and data into various forms of cloud solutions.
However, as a downside of that, many enterprises fail to create proper authentication controls in their APIs. As a result, hackers will try to access the data via the back end from open internal channels.
How To Protect Cloud Data and Accounts
1. Pick You Cloud Service Provider Carefully
When it comes to picking a cloud service provider – it’s important that you get it approved by veterans in the industry along with your peers. Look for a knowledgeable and trusted name. You must use a tailored approach rather than sticking with a one-size-fits-all approach.
It’s important to think about your needs and overall data volume and how it may change over time. Avoid going with startups as most of them fail to deliver the desired results; especially when it comes to scaling your company.
2. Use Strong Passwords and Change Them Regularly
Today you can no longer do with passwords that are easy to bypass and crack. It’s imperative that you use passphrases rather than passwords. That means, using a combination of numbers, lowercase letters, capital letters, and special symbols.
This is the best policy when it comes to creating impossible to crack passwords. This is essential for creating better compliances on the level of employees which happens to be the most common access points for those with malicious intentions.
3. Use Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
Using two-factor authentication is the latest and greatest method that almost all organizations are deploying. Basically, you’re adding an extra step before the user can successfully login using their passwords; thus doubling down on the protection.
So, every time someone tries to access sensitive data using their passwords, they would have to use a special security code which is often sent to the registered device before allowing a secure login.
4. Avoid Storing Sensitive Information in the Cloud
There can be times when you have no choice but to store all of your data on the cloud. However, if there is even a slight possibility that you can do without having to store your sensitive data on the cloud, it’s always an excellent step.
It’s better to look into some other appropriate alternative solution for storing crucial information.
5. Use an Encrypted Service
Many of the upcoming cloud services providers will offer something called local encryption and decryption of your files other than offering backup and storage. That means, all the files which are stored on your cloud as well as on your computer will be encrypted for safety.
Because of the doubling of protection, no one including the server administrator of the service provider will be able to access sensitive data. Spideroak is one of the popular names that offer doubly encrypted cloud services.
The Bottom Line
Hopefully, this blog post sheds some light on why it’s time to take your cloud security seriously and what all measures you can implement to ensure that.
