4 Main Areas of Cloud Security You Should Be Addressing
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A recent cloud adoption survey from 2021 found that cloud adoption by companies is at an all-time high of 90%. It’s expected that that number will reach 100% this year if it hasn’t already due to the changes in workforce structure driven by the pandemic.
With much of what companies do moving to the cloud – data, software, processes – cloud environments are the new main target for cybercriminals.
Incidents of cloud credential compromise have been rising, with this now being the main cause of data breaches. Because many cloud providers (Amazon, Microsoft, etc.) have stringent data center security standards, hackers are finding other ways in, mainly through compromised user accounts.
98% of enterprises have experienced a cloud security breach in the last 18 months.
This shift to the cloud means that businesses need to make cloud security a priority, and there are four essential areas that you need to be addressing.
1. Identity Security
The first area of cloud security you need to look at is identity security, also known as access management. User credentials were responsible for 61% of global data breaches in 2020, according to Verizon’s Data Breach Investigations Report.
Addressing identity security involves putting some of the following cybersecurity protections into place:
Strong Passwords: Don’t just tell users they need to use strong passwords, enforce their use through security policies in apps that don’t allow weak passwords to be saved.
Multi-factor Authentication: With a 99.9% effectiveness rate at stopping fraudulent sign-in attempts, this is a “must-have” safeguard for all your user accounts.
Use of Single Sign-on (SSO): You can streamline the user experience and make access security easier to manage by putting an SSO application in place.
2. Network Protections
Hackers that gain access to your network or the network of a remote employee can make their way into a device and through that device, access cloud data, and accounts, such as email.
It’s important that networks are protected with proactive monitoring for any threats, a next-gen firewall application, and zero-trust security measures. One of these would be application safe-listing that only allows designated code to run, blocking all others (including malware or ransomware).
With many employees working remotely, companies haven’t always kept up with network security when it comes to those home networks. It’s a difficult needle to thread in some cases because the network and router are owned by the employee and used for more than just work.
But some simple safeguards like ensuring a strong router password, and setting up a guest network to segregate work devices from home devices are non-intrusive protections that can be put in place.
3. Device-based Security
The computers, mobile devices, and IoT devices that connect to your business cloud apps and data need to also have proper security to ensure they’re not compromised.
Once a device is compromised, a hacker can often gain access to a cloud account without even needing the password.
Device security best practices include:
Patch and update management for software and operation system
Advanced antivirus/anti-malware
Code or biometric locks for screens
Regular virus scans
Monitoring of device access to business assets
Using an endpoint device management application, such as Microsoft Intune, can help you better ensure device security of all those mobile endpoints. This is especially important now that employees are accessing data from multiple devices (desktop, tablet, and mobile) and can often do this while outside your immediate company network.
An endpoint device management application also helps you keep the business side of an employee device separate from the personal side. This can allow you to enforce document security policies and better secure access to any cloud accounts.
4. Visibility & Compliance
You need to maintain visibility into how your cloud data is being used and who is accessing that data. One data leak where an employee accidentally exposes personally identifiable information (PII) of a customer can lead to a data privacy compliance breach and penalty.
Another danger of not having full visibility into how your data is used in cloud applications has to do with shadow IT. This is the term used for cloud applications that employees may be using for work without your knowledge.
Without a cloud app use policy in place, well-meaning employees may start using an application they like on their own. This means that company data could be stored in an app that hasn’t been reviewed to see if it meets your compliance requirements.
It’s important to have visibility into all cloud data storage and activities happening in your organization and to educate employees on the apps that can be used for business data and those that cannot.
Get Help Ensuring Your Company’s Cloud Data is Protected
BrainStomp can help your business address each of the four important areas of cloud security to reduce your risk of a costly breach.
Schedule a free consultation today! Call 260-918-3548 or reach out online.
