How Does Cloud Security Work? | Cloud Computing Security

How Cloud Security Works - Cloud Computing Security

How Cloud Security Works - Cloud Computing Security

 

What Is Cloud Security?

Cloud security is a set of strategies and practices for protecting data and applications hosted in the cloud. Like cybersecurity, cloud security is a very broad field, and not all types of attacks can be completely prevented. However, a well-designed cloud security strategy greatly reduces the risk of cyberattacks.

 

Despite these risks, cloud computing is often more secure than on-premises computing. Most cloud service providers have the resources to keep data more secure than individual companies, which allows cloud service providers to update infrastructure and patch security vulnerabilities as quickly as possible. On the other hand, a single company may not have sufficient resources to consistently perform these tasks.

Note: Cloud security is not the same as Security as a Service (SECaaS or SaaS), which refers to security products hosted in the cloud.

 

What Are the Main Cloud Security Risks?

 

Most cloud security risks fall into one of these general categories:

  • Data exposed or leaked
  • An unauthorized user from outside the organization has access to internal data
  • An authorized internal user has excessive access to internal data
  • A malicious attack, such as a DDoS attack or malware infection, that cripples or destroys cloud infrastructure

The goal of a cloud security strategy is to minimize the threat posed by these risks as much as possible by protecting data, managing user authentication and access, and continuing to operate in the face of any attack.

 

What Are Some Key Cloud Security Technologies?

A cloud security strategy should include all of the following technologies:

Encryption: Encryption is a method of scrambling data so that only authorized parties can understand the information. If an attacker breaks into a company’s cloud and finds unencrypted data, they would be able to perform any number of harmful actions with the data: leak it, sell it, or use it to carry out further attacks, and so on. However, if the company’s data is encrypted, the attacker will only find scrambled data that cannot be used unless they somehow discover the decryption key (which should be nearly impossible). In this way, encryption helps prevent data leaks and exposure, even if other security measures fail.

 

 

Data can be encrypted either at rest (when it is stored) or in transit (while it is being sent from one place to another). Cloud data should be encrypted both while in storage and in transit so that attackers cannot intercept and read it. Encrypting data in transit should address both data traveling between the cloud and the user, and data traveling from one cloud to another, as in a multi-cloud or hybrid cloud environment. Additionally, data should be encrypted when stored in a database or through a cloud storage service.

 

Additionally

If the cloud is in a multi-cloud or hybrid cloud environment connected at the network layer, a VPN can encrypt the traffic between them. If they are connected at the application layer, SSL/TLS encryption should be used. SSL/TLS should also encrypt traffic between the user and the cloud (see What is HTTPS?).

 

Identity and Access Management (IAM): Identity and Access Management (IAM) products track who the user is and what they are allowed to do, authorize users, and block access to unauthorized users as necessary. IAM is extremely important in cloud computing because the user’s identity and access privileges determine whether they can access data, rather than the user’s device or location.

 

 

IAM helps reduce the threats of unauthorized users accessing internal assets and authorized users exceeding their privileges. The right IAM solution will help mitigate several types of attacks, including account takeover and insider attacks (when a user or employee abuses their access to expose data).

 

IAM may include several different services, or it may be a single service combining all of the following capabilities:

Firewall:

A cloud firewall provides a layer of protection around cloud assets by blocking malicious web traffic.

Unlike traditional firewalls, which are hosted on-premises and defend the network perimeter, cloud firewalls are hosted in the cloud and form a virtual security barrier around cloud infrastructure.

Most web application firewalls fall into this category.

Cloud firewalls block DDoS attacks, malicious bot activity, and vulnerability exploits. This reduces the chances of a cyberattack crippling an organization’s cloud infrastructure.

 

 

What Are Other Important Practices for Keeping Cloud Data Secure?

 

Implementing the technologies mentioned above (plus any additional cloud security products) alone is not sufficient to protect cloud data. In addition to standard cybersecurity best practices, organizations using the cloud should follow these cloud security practices:

Proper configuration of cloud server security settings: When a company does not properly configure its security settings, it can lead to a data breach. Misconfigured cloud servers can expose data directly to the broader Internet. Properly configuring cloud security settings requires team members who are experts in working with each cloud, and may also require close collaboration with the cloud vendor.

Also:

Consistent security policies across all clouds and data centers: Security procedures must be applied across the company’s entire infrastructure, including public clouds, private clouds, and on-premises infrastructure. If one aspect of the company’s cloud infrastructure – for example, the public cloud service for big data processing – is not protected with encryption and strong user authentication, attackers are likely to find the weak link and target it.

Also

Backup plans: As with any other type of security, there must be a plan for when things go wrong. To prevent data loss or tampering, data should be backed up in another cloud or on-premises. There should also be a failover plan in place so that business operations are not disrupted if one of the cloud services fails. One of the advantages of multi-cloud and hybrid cloud deployments is that different clouds can be used as a backup – for example, cloud data storage can back up an on-premises database.

 

User and employee education: A large proportion of data breaches occur due to a user being exposed to a phishing attack, unintentionally installing malware, using an outdated and unpatched device, or practicing poor password hygiene (reusing the same password, writing their password in a visible location, etc.). By educating their internal staff on security, companies operating in the cloud can reduce the risk of these incidents occurring. (The Cloudflare Learning Center is a good resource for security education.)

 

 

 

 

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