Why the cloud should be protected - and how to do it

 Of course, the digital move to the cloud - either completely or at least in part - brings with it one or the other challenge in addition to the well-known advantages. Above all, this includes the issue of data security. Because in the cloud in particular, the sacred treasures of a company are so openly lying around that one has to ask oneself: Can't or don't these companies want to take better care of their sanctuary?

In the cloud, the required data protection is not an easy task, but it is possible. With the right know-how and the right methods. Both of these will be discussed in this article.

4 questions for the right security strategy

The first step is to determine the cloud security strategy that is right for your company. For this reason, you should be able to answer the following questions:

• 1. Which data protection regulations do I have to observe when storing my data in the cloud?
  2. Which cloud-based threat scenarios are relevant in our specific case and how can we protect ourselves from them with the given tools and techniques?
  3. What are the consequences for the company if a successful cyber attack occurs? Do I have the right plans and measures up my sleeve that can restore a possible status quo?
  4. What internal and external vulnerabilities might my cloud infrastructure have? How can I minimize or completely eliminate them?

Typical vulnerabilities of cloud infrastructures

If you look at the most common vulnerabilities in many cloud environments, they can essentially be reduced to four "candidates": incorrect configurations, vulnerabilities in the Active Directory environment, internal threats and attacks on one's own supply chain. It is precisely these four areas that are attacked most frequently, so it is worth taking a particularly critical look at the existing and relevant defensive measures.

Choosing the right security measures and tools

More and more security officers and CISOs are currently asking themselves this one question: How can my company determine the best possible security strategy and thus also define the associated measures and tools? Well, for a first approximation of the right answer, it is definitely worth taking a deeper look at the requirements that the tool in question should meet. These include in detail:

Every time your own cloud environment grows, the risk of a possible attack also increases. Be it from incorrectly or badly configured instances or simply because of the missing or insufficient transparency of the cloud environment. It is therefore imperative that the defense tool in question enables the deepest possible insights, and ideally with the friendly support of the associated AI engine .

Another important aspect is the widest possible integration of the security tool of your choice into the existing cloud environment. Because nothing is more dangerous than the assumption that the security application and the selected cloud instance can communicate with each other without any problems. Because that is by no means a matter of course. Therefore, the bulwark tool should be checked for the highest possible compatibility with the existing cloud providers.