Cloud computing: How to avoid the high risk in it?
It is no secret; cloud computing is winning the IT industry. As noted in the 2019 State of the Cloud Survey, about 94% of the respondents use the cloud.
With the surge in cloud computing and the rising technology of cloud as a service, the fear regarding the risk in IT security is at its worst.
Data security is one of the leading concerns of IT professionals. And with a wide range of important services rapidly shifting to the cloud, IT heads must be alert on the risks inbred in the present cloud habitat. These risks hold a major threat on the corporate data, and without tackling them, even the finest business mobility management schemes are vain. So, let us look at some of the ways to break this risk in cloud computing. Read on…
You really have to take passwords seriously
As all the documents are zipped and protected with passwords, it is important to set one smartly. 90% of passwords to be exact – can be hacked within seconds.
Passwords with eight characters mixed in case letters, numbers, and symbols were once thought to be powerful. But, with the advent of advanced software and hardware, these were easily cracked with no difficulty.
Due to the limitation of our ability to memorize complicated credentials, a tendency to reuse the passwords are common. But this decision seems to hold the highest risk in it. Never fall into this category. Come up with a diverse and real password to hinder hackers. However, in the near future, fingerprints, SMS passcodes, and access control system will be the standards for passwords.
Educate your employees
No doubt that the cloud services have huge advantages as they allow employees to store, share, control, and create more data as compared to any other services out there. But, these new applications have come with an increased risk that could endanger your organizations’ data, if not handled carefully. This is why it is important to get your employees trained on how to use cloud storage and keep them well-informed on all the possible risks associated with it.
Cloud services are a necessity for all companies dealing with massive amounts of data, and educating your employees will always be a boon to you.
Utilize access controls
Cloud computing is an emerging force for its flexibility for scaling to fulfill the business needs and to increase partnership across locations. This again arises security concerns with its ability to expose vulnerabilities out of your command.
Here, access control has a great role in your business. Access controls limit the security permissions based on the actions connected to the employee’s job functions. By limiting access, you ensure that the critical files are available only to the staff needing them, thereby reducing the odds of exposure to the wrong individuals.
Encryption is key
Business all over the world take an extra measure by encrypting their cloud data in transit and at rest, to avoid unauthorized access. By a specialized code, encrypting your data assures that only authorized users access the information. Cloud encryption offers greater defense against data crimes, and if done properly, you are safe to use cloud storage for your data needs.
Cloud governance policies
Certifying a cloud application is just the beginning. Be sure you have the right cloud application governance process to secure flexibility with external and internal data privacy. Train your employees, implement usage policies, and conduct periodic risk assessments. Be alert on the inconsistent security views.
Zero trust models to reduce risks
Zero trust is an IT security approach where an organization demands every user device or system outside or inside its border to be validated and verified before connecting to its system. The zero trust approach restricts access tightly and allows only a minimum set of users to access the data with respect to their job function requirement. When implemented correctly, this reduces the risks to nil.
Learn from IT failures in the news
Industry study of cloud-related failures will assist you in reducing your cloud computing risk. With the emerging nature of the cloud, there is always something to learn from the high-level incidents gone wrong.
A data backup plan
Cloud continues to grow and along with the threat of permanent data loss. So, it is important to have a secure backup plan for the data. This is more about securing your business than to secure your actual data. The IT heads must hand out data and application to several zones for further protection and stick to the best practice of a daily backup, disaster recovery, and off-site storage.
Cloud antivirus software
The basic level of protection for any network – be it home, business or on the cloud is to have a fundamental safety tool, i.e., a genuine cloud antivirus and if able firewalls. There are many loyal, enterprise-level cloud antivirus that has specialized traits to ensure protection against online threats. These softwares are free to download. On the other hand, firewalls allow companies to set their own rules and policies. The company must invest a budget to get a firewall that meets their needs. The only thing that the network admin should mind is to turn on the firewall and cloud antivirus to stay protected against any threat and to gain virus removal.
The importance of cloud is growing exponentially. Gartner predicts that the cloud market services will expand 17.3% in 2019, i.e., $206.2 billion, and by 2020, almost 90% of the organization will be utilizing the cloud services. It is evident that introducing a new data system follows with serious risks to consider, but it is also obvious that the benefits of cloud computing can help the business grow, even with the risk. Thus, all you have to do is to be cautious and plan the implementation right.
Aditya works as a Growth Assistant at AirTract.Com, a social platform wherein people ask questions, read and write articles, share knowledge and experience. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science Engineering and has been working in the field of Digital Marketing for the past two years. He is also a voracious reader and a big sports fan.
