Featured article by Sarah Patrick, Analyst at Clutch
The public’s perception of the Cloud seems to change constantly. In light of high-profile security breaches at Target (2013) and Home Depot (2014) and in the iCloud (2014), many users raised concerns about privacy and data security.
Even with recent technological advances, thoughts on cloud security remain mixed. In fact, while 64 percent of medium and large enterprises believe cloud infrastructure is more secure than legacy systems, 31 percent also deem security the most prominent challenge they encountered in 2015, according to a study on the state of cloud security in the enterprise market.
With more than 90 percent of businesses using cloud infrastructure, how do IT professionals combat lingering concerns about privacy, data safety, and security infractions?
Overall, enterprise impressions of cloud security are shaped by three factors.
1. Security is One of Many Benefits Cloud Infrastructure Offers Businesses
As cloud infrastructure plays an ever more prominent role in the enterprise market, IT professionals are charged with keeping the increasing amounts of data stored on the Cloud secure.
Cloud security systems’ robust monitoring and response systems aid this task, which explains why nearly 50 percent of enterprises believe security is a leading benefit of cloud computing.
“Using the Cloud is like putting your money in the bank versus under your mattress. Even though your money, or data, is not on-premise, the bank will do a much better job of protecting it because it has vaults and security cameras — more than what a single enterprise company can do.” — David Linthicum, Senior Vice President, Cloud Technology Partners
Cloud infrastructure provides not only access to top-of-the-line data centers that are staffed by a team of expert IT professionals but also proactive monitoring and response mechanisms.
These include,
* Video surveillance
* Biometric scanning
* Patrol guards
* Equipment stored in locked cages
* 24/7 threat monitoring and intrusion detection systems
Overall, companies that migrate to the cloud become more secure.
“A cloud vendor will have good, if not better, security and support for security than any one company. Because of this, moving to the Cloud would increase the company’s overall internal security, as opposed to relying on its IT department only.” – Duane Tharp, Vice President of Technical Sales and Services, Cloud-Elements
2. Enterprises Prioritize Security to Head Off Potential Data Breaches
Despite touting cloud security as a leading benefit of cloud computing, enterprises indicate that security is also the challenge they encounter most frequently, according to the same study from business-to-business research firm Clutch.
How can security both benefit and challenge enterprises?
One explanation posits that migrating to cloud infrastructure increases the visibility of cracks in data security and in turn increases the demand for better security measures.
“The big struggle for IT teams arises when businesses demand higher and higher levels of transparency. Because of this, the IT team needs to build new security policies to create the impression that a business is investing a lot more resources in security. Truthfully though, a company should already have had these security measures in place.” – Jason Reichl, CEO, Go Nimbly
3. To Combat Security Concerns, Enterprises Implement Additional Security Measures
The implementation of additional cloud security safeguards is a requisite step for enterprises. Cloud infrastructure is not secure enough on its own, out-of-the-box.
“A common mistake is that companies think the Cloud is secure enough out-of-the-box. But, in reality, the Cloud has two major components: the backend cloud vendor infrastructure, which is secured by the vendor, and the company-specific cloud infrastructure, which must be secured by the company.” – Jose Alvarez, Director of IT Infrastructure, Auxis
What security measures do enterprises invest in the most?
The most common defense enterprises invest in is encryption.
Encryption is important because the most popular cloud storage services only encrypt data on their end: if it’s not their equipment, it’s not their problem.
In short, enterprises as a whole believe that the Cloud is more secure than legacy systems, but it is not impenetrable. Extra security measures are imperative to ensure a smooth transition to cloud infrastructure without compromising mission critical data.
Sarah is an analyst at Clutch. As a member of the marketing team, she conducts research that aims to help consumers select agencies and firms and use IT services and software that enhance their business. Clutch is a Washington, DC-based research, reviews, and ratings platform for B2B. It identifies leading software and professional services firms that deliver results for their clients.
