Cloud Services Are Popular, But Security Risks Remain

Among the benefits of the cloud is that it can scale with your business, make IT easier to manage, eliminate upfront capital expenses, and help you avoid getting bogged down with continuous upgrade cycles.

Just like your own data center, however, the cloud is composed of systems, software and people. This means the cloud is susceptible to the same threats as premises systems. Cloud data breaches have happened in the past and will likely continue to happen in the future. So it pays to take proper precautions.

Whether your migration to the cloud is being handled in-house or by outside experts, it is advisable to stay on top of the situation during every step of the process.

Here are some important tips to ensure trouble-free cloud migration and usage:

Get an independent assessment of your current IT security posture. If there are any outstanding issues, you should address them before the migration so you can begin cloud operations with a clean baseline.
Find out if there are any additional security measures you need to take to safeguard communication between your premises systems and the proposed cloud, particularly if your organization must adhere to federal mandates governing data privacy.
Make sure you have a global security policy in place that covers your diverse platforms – locally and in the cloud. Access controls, enforcement, reporting and other details may vary by platform, but they should still comply with the top-level security policy that encompasses all systems.
If a contractor is performing the migration, your IT security team must review and agree with the planned approach, if only to ensure everybody is on the same page. You also want to be sure the contractor is not introducing a security policy that falls short of your organization’s needs or that will not pass a regulatory compliance review.

The cloud has many advantages but ultimate responsibility for security remains with you. With careful planning and proper attention to detail during every step of the migration process, you can minimize security issues and enjoy peace of mind.

Let our experienced experts conduct an IT security assessment for you and assist with cloud migration to ensure a successful outcome.