Cloud computing will soon encompass more and more of business and personal internet use. The almost instantaneous communication occurring between computers has led to developers realizing how to leverage the power of one or more larger computers through a smaller one. Any sort of mobile device, such as an iPod, iPhone, Android or any other kind of portable tablet that can access the internet and thus view bank accounts, make online purchases or read email from anywhere are all examples of cloud computing. For many people this has become so much a part of everyday life it is hardly anything new. Businesses, however, are seizing upon the many advantages made possible by cloud computing. Simple bookkeeping to outsourcing an entire IT department and anything in between can all be accomplished with “the cloud.” A little bit of forethought will keep an individual safe, but
businesses will need to learn “cloud security.”
Some of the best solutions to security in cloud computing are the simplest. One great aspect of the cloud is that it can be accessed from any available computer, such as one at the local library. A problem may arise if an employee accesses company computers from a non-company machine. Carelessness in this kind of activity could cause a breach in security. A cyber thief could be merely watching over a person’s shoulder and observe a log on or anything else their internet savvy mind would spot with such elevated understanding and access company or personal accounts later. Data flowing through the wireless connections can easily be intercepted and hacked by anyone with the right software.
Businesses would merely need to inform their employees of such possibilities and greatly reduce risks by requiring network access to occur only with company machines and only in certain levels of privacy. Encryption, the coding of messages into ciphertext, will greatly eliminate intruders and hackers. Only people with the same encryption software and the right decoding information will
be able to view the transferred information. Teaching employees and requiring encryption is also a very strong and easily learnable precaution. The internet has advanced to the point where almost all merchant transactions flow through a secure terminal which can be seen by observing the small lock that appears to the left of the web address during such activity. No one should conduct an online
transaction without seeing this in place in their web browser.
More advanced security concepts become necessary as a business grows. It has now become possible to outsource an entire IT department but not all businesses are alike. A company that provides such colocation business services may not be able to provide what would be called a cross platform security system that would meet all of their client’s needs. The more individualized a business’
needs are, the more unique its security requirements and it would be wise to retain an IT expert who can address these issues. Cloud usages, called platforms, occur in the most basic form as Cloud Software as a Service (Saas), Cloud Platform as a Service (Paas) and Cloud Infrastructure as a Service (Iaas). A business needs to consider having the right IT expert or experts on staff or choosing the right company that make the necessary accommodations for each of these levels. Certain requirements are also now required by law to prevent data theft and a strong company will also have this within their operations. One last great and simple step is to have in house back systems at all times.
