13 Ways to Protect Cloud Applications in an Organization

Attention corporate decision makers! 
 

Are you one of those whose company’s data has acquired increased preciousness over the years, especially after the pandemic? 
 

Post-pandemic of 2.5 years, the world has rapidly digitized. And for hackers, there is a minefield of data which they can acquire, and then demand millions of dollars in return of not making it public.
 

Please spare your precious minutes to read this blog which shall talk about:  
 

1. 1. What is Cloud and Cloud Security?  
2. 2. Components of Cloud Computing Security  
3. 3. Cybersecurity Figures
4. 4. Various solutions for Securing Cloud Applications   
5. 5. What about the certifications? 
6. 6. What"s Next?

What is Cloud and Cloud Security?:  

Cloud is nothing but a server or a group of servers in which information across formats is stored. Any and everything which is on the internet, is hosted on a cloud platform. No cyber-attack is incomplete without a strike on the cloud setup. 
 

There is a server room, where "cloud" is located along with networking equipment in data centers. Servers can be mounted in racks, blades or towers and can range from 10 to hundreds in number. Server rooms in are organized by various apps and digital platforms of a company.  
 

Cloud Security is keeping these servers, their wires, other parts of their machinery, and the data in them safe. It is a collection of procedures, technologies which are formulated and acquired/developed respectively for the internal and external safety of a corporation’s business from digital enemies.  
 

Components of Cloud Computing Security  

Below are 5 broad components of Cloud Security: 
 

• Data security 
• Data retention (DR) 
• Governance & legal compliance 
• Business Continuity (BC) planning 
• Identity and access management (IAM) 
   

Cybersecurity Figures

Corporate sector is all about numbers. Here are some of those: 
 

1. 1. As per this piece on Embroker, the average cost of a ransomware attack is $1.85 Million.  
2. 2. Parachute has shared that damages from ransomware attacks in 2021 were $20 Billion. It quoted a report by Avanan, as per which 5% of all emails were phishing emails. 
3. 3. Statista has highlighted that 47% of those that they surveyed faced work interruptions in their departments while 15% of those had to shut down their entire business and 33% faced reputational damage in terms of clients, suppliers and public at large: all this is a Nano impact of a cyberattack.  

Various solutions for Securing Cloud Applications:  

1. How to not be a victim of Pharming?  

These are some tips to avoid being a victim of Pharming:  

• Clicking on a link after verifying its source  
• Checking grammatical errors on a website,  
• Having a renowned DNS server
   

2. Actions so that Industrial Internet of Things Attacks don’t take place:  

IIoT  attacks can be sophisticated and have the potential to stop production at the biggest manufacturing, storage, and logistics plants. 4 main measures to prevent them: 

• Create asset maps 
• Segmenting networks  
• Implementing network visibility 
• Monitoring inbound and outbound packet data  
   

3. Measures to avoid Wi-Fi Eavesdropping/Evil-Twin Attacks:   

Install these tools to not have your office’s Wi-Fi attacked. When using some else"s Wi-Fi, always do these couple of things: 

• Sticking to HTTPS website 
• Avoiding public Wi-Fi networks  
• PSI (Personal Security Keys) 
• Virtual Private Network [VPN] 
• Wireless Intrusion Prevention System (WISP) 

4. Regular Cloud Maintenance activities:  

At the outset, if you are getting into securing your company’s Information Technology networks, these are some standard activities which ought to be done: 

• Performing regular backups 
• Scheduling updation of network names and passwords 
• Reviewing activity reports 
   

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5. Need of network auditing: 

Any network requires an assessment routinely. A computers’ network is no different. Network audit is necessary for:  

• Finding security vulnerabilities 
• Lesser used background applications   
• Firewall strength 
• Anti-virus/anti-malware/anti-ransomware software 
• Robustness of servers, software"s, & applications 
• Drive Backups 
   

6. Broad areas of Cloud Management Services:  

Please check that whichever product you buy to manage your company’s cloud services; at least 4 of these areas are covered: 

• Identity management services 
• Access management services 
• Identity governance services 
• Authentication services 
   

7. Essential Components of Cloud Security set-up:  

Cloud Computing, a company’s networking system, and the businesses which are generated because of those are interconnected. For the security set-up the following are essential components: 

• Intrusion Detection System [IDS] 
• Intrusion Prevention System [IPS] 
• Web Application Firewall [WAF] 
• Dynamic Host Configuration Protocols [DHCP]  
• Secure Socket Layer [SSL] certificates  
• Wi-Fi Protected Access [WPA] protocol 
   

8. Whole Disk Encryption/ Full Disk Encryption [FDE]: 

FDE is a part of End-to-End Encryption, in which a secret decryption key is necessary for accessing data. This key is accessible only to select personnel. It is a more recommended method for data safety, as all files, irrespective of their formats are covered under the safety net, compared to File-Level Encryption [FLE]. FLE covers only select files and directories.  

9. Cloud Access Security Broker [CASB]:  

You could do well to install a Cloud Access Security Broker [CASB] for your Cloud Infrastructure. It is a software involved in vigilance between users and applications on the Cloud space, apart from watching out for security threats. Device profiling, credential mapping, tokenization, encryption, malware detection, mitigation, logging, alerting, are some of its features. 

10. Solutions from an article by Rambus:  

In Mutual Authentication, the sender and receiver prove their identity before transmitting any data. Rapid Over the Air [OTA] device/key replacement ensures minimal breaks in operations. Secure Device Decommissioning ensures that even scrapped devices can’t be reused without authorization. 
 

11. Employee Education:  

As a manager, it is not possible for you keep track of small signs which come in the form of for example, a website not opening. If they know that about threat signals, they can bring it to your notice and timely preventive action can be taken. 
 

12. Up-to date digital products:  

Some of you may find it a nuisance, but the reality is that stealing data and protecting it is an unending cat-and-mouse game. Newer types of malwares, ransomware are being formulated, so the latest versions of softwares are the most common thing which can be done to combat, "data-stealers." 
 

13. Regulatory compliance:  

Last but the not least, please consider being thoroughly aware of and being compliant with the regulatory requirements of your business’ industry and territory of operation. This ought to be done so that your customers’ data is protected, and business’s integrity remains intact always.  
 

After reading about all these digital tools, it is only logical to think who shall guide you further about the budgeting, the best tools in those budgets, and how and when to utilize them.  
 

What about the certifications?   

Entrepreneurs, worry not.  
 

If your existing employees are eligible to acquire Certified Information Security Auditor [CISA] certification, under the leadership of a Certified Chief Information Security Officer [CCISO], assisted by a Certified Cloud Security Auditor [CCAK], Certified Cloud Security Professional [CCSP] for your cloud security division, with the oversight of a Certified Ethical Hacker [CEH]- Master, you are in safer fingers.  
 

Another option is to hire professionals possessing these authorizations.  
 

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Students, all these certifications require a minimum of work experience, apart from knowledge of various other aspects. Build a career path involving formal education which makes you eligible for these authorizations.  
 

Remember, authorizations compliment your body of work. 
 

What"s Next? 

Whichever stage of career you are, and whichever certification you choose, Mercury Solutions should always be your Authorized Training Partner [ATP].  
 

The best time to start combating the challenges of competent employees in Cloud Computing or digital safety is now. See you in the next blog!  

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