Moving your applications and infrastructure to the Cloud has numerous advantages for your IT systems as well as your bottom line. Many companies are making this transition under the impression that the Cloud is more secure. Unfortunately, this is not always the case.
For those that have made or are in the process of transitioning assets to the Cloud, now is the perfect time to re-evaluate your Cloud security posture. This begs the question, how secure is your cloud solution?
Does your Security Strategy include Cloud Applications and Infrastructure?
In the modern digital age, most tech savvy organizations have thrown significant time and money at securing their on premise environments. With the implementation of perimeter defenses, proactive monitoring software, and physical security most companies stand at the ready to guard their own digital gates.
And while it’s true that most Cloud Service Providers offer some measure of security, there is no guarantee that their security posture equals your own. This is especially true if you are contractually bound to operate under certain federal guidelines such as NIST and MARS-E. This is why it is critical that you integrate your applications and infrastructure deployed in the cloud into your defensive strategy. The first major question is have you conducted a detailed analysis between your security posture and that of your cloud service provider?
Do you have visibility into who is accessing your Cloud Data?
Now that you are considering the needs of your Cloud deployments in your security posture, let’s take a deeper look at the potential exposures. The primary target for any cybercriminal is users that have access to your systems. Knowing this, most organizations have implemented various forms of multi-factor authentication and bio-credentialing to handle their own employees.
The Cloud opens up a whole new universe of potential users that may not be considered in your current defensive strategy. First off, the cloud service provider is maintaining that infrastructure at the hardware or O/S level. This of course means that they are routinely accessing your systems with administrative level credentials.
Secondly, applications deployed in the cloud are typically done so to allow remote user access. Even though you are providing credentials to that remote user, you do not have the same level of control as you do with an on premise employee. The question here is, are you sure that the remote user is the same person that you issued the credentials to? How can you be sure?
Are your user access controls in the Cloud the same as your On-Premise controls?
Once you understand who has access to your systems, your next mission is to determine how these users can gain access to your environments. More importantly, you need to ensure that you can appropriately control these access privileges.
Identity and Access Management (IAM) is a considerable topic in and of itself. However, the first priority is ensuring that you can establish a consistent set of controls, processes, and procedures that includes your newly deployed cloud footprint. This control has to extend beyond those employees that clock in to the office every morning. In today’s online world, that control has to expand beyond your four walls and have the potential to reach around the globe.
Regardless of where you are in your Cloud Migration efforts, Atrion has the experience across multiple industries to help you identify critical exposures in your security posture. With our help you will be able to craft a defensive strategy that protects your digital assets without impacting organizational productivity and compliance.
