With a growing number of businesses realizing the advantages of the cloud, it’s unlikely that cloud adoption will let up anytime soon. A recent IDG survey foundthat 70% of respondents already have at least one application deployed in the cloud. Meanwhile, 56% of respondents are still vetting IT operations for eventual deployment into the cloud.

Regardless of deployment plans, any movement towards the cloud must be secure in its nature. The potential costs of neglecting security can be tremendous — in 2016, ransomware and other malware attacks cost businesses over $1 billion.

Ways to Move Securely

Any organization looking to transfer data to a cloud service provider for use in cloud applications should make sure their data goes through encryption processes such as SSL or an encryption gateway. The same applies for data used with IaaS, although it’s bound to be on a larger scale.

There are several other considerations that should be made when it comes to moving towards cloud infrastructure as securely as possible:

• Organizations must understand how their data will be migrated. For instance, the CSP tasked with the move may do so via a VPN connection between virtual machines in the cloud and the data center.
• Organizations must learn about the security measures their CSP will employ, as well as how the CSP mitigates and manages risk. Questions about accountability, data backups, and disaster recovery measures should also be asked and answered.
• PCI-DSS and HIPAA compliance are essential, especially for organizations dealing with online payments, healthcare, or any other arena where sensitive and confidential data is handled.
• Organizations should know what the CSP’s service level agreement (SLA) offers, especially in the event of a disaster or breach. The exact verbiage contained in a typical SLA could aid or hinder disaster recovery efforts, depending on the organization’s needs.

Not every service provider will offer the same portfolio of services or devote the same quality or care, so it’s important for organizations to carefully vet multiple service providers. Organizations must stay informed about post-migration data ownership, where said data is being stored, and which entities can see the data. Consideration should also be put towards the process (and aftermath) of terminating a relationship with a service provider.

Agility Enhances Security

The rise of the cloud is just one reason for organizations to remain agile in the face of a rapidly changing world. Agility is also crucial for staying knowledgeable about the latest security measures.

Fortunately, any such gaps that open up can be bridged through the following efforts:

• CISOs should invest in active, hands-on security education throughout their tenure.
• All employees should be educated on the risks of a data breach and what to do if and when it happens.
• An organization’s most sensitive data should not be stored in the cloud, especially if its loss would threaten to compromise the company.

To learn more about how eXemplify’s services can enhance your organization’s security, contact us and schedule a no-obligation consultation today.