Cloud Computing and Data Security

“It’s on the cloud.” I’m sure you’ve heard that term a time or two and you all know that the cloud refers to the internet. Here’s a fun fact! Did you know the cloud was first used to reference the telephone network? Whether it be CRM mechanisms, file sharing, team communication, sales management, project management, data storage or something else, cloud computing has become the standard for most businesses. The convenience is second to none offering businesses the ability to allow their employees to work in various offices around the globe accessing data that once required employees to be in one central-local chained to a personal computer. However, with that convenience and limitless possibilities comes some concern for security breaches and hacking. A couple that you may be familiar with are (www.spinbackup.com):

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• Cambridge Analytica made major news headlines when it accessed Facebook data to profile voters. They harvested data from Facebook profiles without consent and used the data for political means in an unauthorized way. Approximately 87 million users were compromised.

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• Marriott Starwood Hotels’ guest database was comprised leaving 327 million guest records containing personal information including passport numbers exposed.

There are many, many more cases involving security breaches as hackers are able to access business’ confidential data. However, businesses feel that cloud services far outweigh the potential hazards. Website Magazine recently published an article offering tips on how to secure identity management in cloud computing as this is among the most important issues when it comes to cloud computing.

• Do not allow employees to have free access to everything. For example, the only employees that should have access to payroll information are those that are directly involved with payroll.
• Enough can’t be said for training yourself and your staff. Education is the key to aid in avoiding security breaches. New systems are challenging making specific employee training regarding the system an important part of limiting security breaches.
• Multi-factor authorization is a great way to lower the risk of security breaches and is considered to be one of the most economical and effective methods of keeping hackers away.
• A solid data backup and recovery mechanism will allow you to recover important data lowering the hacker’s ability to hold your precious data as a hostage for ransom.

Cloud computing offers so many advantages, it will continue to be a standard form of operation for businesses. Are you ready to incorporate cloud computing into your business? Give CyberSpyder Security a call today.