3 Cloud Security Issues You Can Encounter

3 Cloud Security Issues You Can Encounter
3 Cloud Security Issues You Can Encounter

What are some cloud security issues you can encounter?

  1. Misconfiguration of settings
  2. Endpoint user error
  3. Cyber threats

Due to the flexibility, scalability, and mobility that cloud platforms give, numerous companies are migrating their workloads from on-premises data centers. Cloud providers invest a huge amount of money in research and development to implement better security than what a business can do on its own. But if your organization is migrating to the cloud for the first time, there might be some cloud security issues you might encounter. Read on to learn more.

Misconfiguration Of Settings

Misconfiguration Of Settings

The most common cause of cloud data breaches is misconfiguration of the security settings on the user’s part. No matter how secure the cloud platform is, the risk of cyber attacks will be there if it is not utilized correctly.

If your cloud security settings are not configured properly, you’re exposing data to the internet without the use of sophisticated techniques and tools. Any stored information like email addresses or sensitive information may potentially be used for social engineering cyber attacks. In the worst case, your important applications can also be modified or deleted. But fortunately, this security issue is preventable as long as you take the time and effort to secure the platform.

For example, one of the common mistakes for first-time users is using weak passwords. These can easily be guessed or stolen by attackers. To prevent sensitive information from leaking, you might want to take a zero-trust approach to cloud security by using best cybersecurity practices. This means that you will treat all access requests, even ones coming from your employees, as malicious.

Your organization can set up multi-factor authentication processes to put an extra layer of security. Aside from a username and a password, people who need to access your data need to provide other factors to prove their identity.

Other than that, they can also use Trend Micro Cloud One, which continuously monitors and alerts you for misconfigurations so you can remove vulnerabilities and have a better-secured cloud platform.

Endpoint User Error

Endpoint User Error

Your staff might make careless mistakes because they don’t have the training on how to protect company information. This can put your data or systems at risk. For example, if you’re implementing Bring-Your-Own-Device policies so your employees can use their own gadgets for work, there might be some security risks you need to know.

With BYOD, your employees can use their computers to do tasks related to business. But at the same time, they can also access URLs or use applications for personal use. Aside from these, some employees may also skip software and device updates because they can take too long to install. This can increase the chances of introducing malware to their device, leading to breaches and loss of data.

Aside from staff training, you need to use the right IT tools to protect your company data from vulnerabilities. For example, Citrix has the Endpoint Management solution which allows you to protect corporate data regardless of where it is accessed. It also provides automatic updates so your workers will have access to new features and bugs will be fixed promptly. Citrix also offers a URL filtering feature so you can restrict and allow access to specific web pages.

Cyberthreats

Cyberthreats

Concerning endpoint user error, untrained employees are also more vulnerable to social engineering attacks that can put your cloud data at risk and affect your ability to perform business processes. Some examples include phishing and a DDoS attack, which are threats that could also occur not just on the cloud but also on-premise. The advantage of using a public cloud is you will have access to resources that could prevent these problems—which can be expensive when implemented on-premise.

One of the ways you can lose data is through phishing attacks. A hacker will create fake emails and websites to get your employees to click on malicious links, or solicit sensitive company information. Fortunately, you can prevent this problem with Trend Micro’s Email Security Solution. This software examines the authenticity of the email sender and analyzes email content to protect against phishing attacks.

Another security concern that an organization can face when moving to a cloud is a Distributed Denial Of Service (DDoS) attack. This occurs when an attacker overloads or exhausts an application’s resources, making it unavailable to users. This can cause downtime for your business, lead to productivity losses, and make your data more vulnerable to hackers.

Solutions like Microsoft Azure offer infrastructure DDoS protection to their users. It has a traffic monitoring feature to look for indicators of an attack 24/7 and mitigate it if it happens. You will also get detailed reports and summaries after the attack to help your team analyze the incident.

Key Takeaway

If your organization is migrating to the cloud for the first time, there might be some cloud security issues you might encounter. But with the right security solutions, you can prevent these problems.

Make sure that your IT team configures the settings properly to maximize the security features your cloud provider offers. To improve access control, you can also implement a zero-trust approach to security and multi-factor authentication. Other than that, staff training is also a must.

If you need help choosing the right cloud solutions for your organization, you can contact CT Link!

Microsoft Azure: an Affordable and Flexible Infrastructure in the Cloud

Microsoft Azure: an Affordable and Flexible Infrastructure in the Cloud

Getting a business started from scratch can be difficult, then adding into the equation of your internal infrastructure?  Now that can be a real challenge for some, even daunting.  Not knowing exactly what specifications you would need at first for servers can be costly, though this can’t be helped as requirements can be grow as you are already in the process of operating.  Due to this reason, many have started to use the services of IaaS (infrastructure as a service) providers such as Microsoft Azure.

Elasticity is one characteristic of cloud computing and its biggest benefits.  This means that you can either stretch or shrink your cloud service usage at any given time to better fit the needs of your IT workloads.  You will be able to seamlessly add or remove virtual servers, storage, network services while paying only for what you use.  This benefit is more prominent when you are heavily using applications where work can be divided among multiple identical applications or services running on different machines.

One of its features, Azure Virtual Machine Scale Sets (scale sets for short), is an identical pool of virtual machines running an application you control.  Azure has tools for you in which you can build or configure the Virtual Machines (VM) the way you want it and also taking control of how many you have at any time.  With scale set, you can have an on-demand fleet of VMs doing whatever work needs to be done but will grow or lessen whenever you need it to or if it reaches a certain parameter you’ve stated.

Scale Set fundamentals

“Cattle versus pets” is a popular metaphor of cloud scaling, which is often credited to a former Microsoft architect Bill Baker.  If servers are like pets, each one is lovingly raised, tended to carefully and even individually named while even being nursed back to health when they are sick.  If they are treated as cattle than they are all interchangeable and do not need to be given names, and when they get sick you get rid of it and get another one.  In a way, scale sets give you a way to clone a herd of “cattle” which you are able to choose its size and breed at any given time at the cost of the herd being identical.

Something important to remember about Azure scale sets is that they are identical VMs.  This means that you can customize the first in the herd, but the rest will be exactly like the first.  There are multiple ways to define your scale set, through the Azure portal, manually via Powershell or the Azure command-line tools, and through an Azure Resource Manager (ARM) template.  From this definition, Azure will know what size VM instance you would like to use, its name, quantity of machines in the set, etc.  You can customize the VM used by the scale set to include your application in three ways: by creating a completely customized VM image and supplying it to Azure, by taking a prebuilt Windows or Linux image and installing your application when the scale set is started, or by customizing the image to include container software and then loading the application container when the scale set is started, each having its benefits.

For a more in-depth read on how Azure Virtual Machine Scale Sets works, you may visit the link or contact us directly at 893-9515!

Join Our Upcoming Event Pushstart!

Join Our Upcoming Event Pushstart!

Cloud technology is being used more by many companies due to its operational and economic benefits it can provide to them. This in turn puts more importance into securing your virtualized data centers, cloud deployments and hybrid environments. Leaving any gaps or neglecting any aspect in your security can now expose you and your company to more threats and serious breaches such as ransomware and other malicious attacks.

CT Link Systems, Inc., in partnership with Trend Micro, invites you to attend our upcoming event, Pushstart, to learn more on how you can better secure your company from the growing threats on Cloud platforms such as Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services!

Register HERE if you would like to learn more!

 

About Cisco

Cisco is a multinational technology corporation that specializes in networking and communication technologies. The company is headquartered in San Jose, California, and has offices and operations in over 100 countries worldwide.

Founded in 1984, Cisco has become a leading provider of networking equipment and solutions for businesses and organizations of all sizes. The company’s products and services include routers, switches, wireless access points, security solutions, collaboration tools, and software-defined networking solutions.

Cisco’s networking solutions enable businesses to connect their devices, applications, and data across local and wide-area networks, as well as the internet. The company’s products are designed to provide fast, reliable, and secure connectivity, with features such as Quality of Service (QoS), network segmentation, and advanced security protocols.

In addition to its hardware products, Cisco also offers a range of software solutions for network management, security, and collaboration. The company’s software-defined networking solutions provide a flexible and scalable approach to network management, enabling businesses to easily configure and manage their networks through a centralized dashboard.

Cisco’s collaboration tools enable teams to work together more effectively, with features such as video conferencing, messaging, and file sharing. The company’s security solutions provide protection against cyber threats, with features such as firewalls, intrusion prevention systems, and endpoint protection.