Believe it or not – the ‘cloud is insecure’ argument is still raging. A more accurate argument would be ‘people who don’t fully understand the technology are insecure’.
I recently met with a client that had a number of objections to converting to cloud computing. At Human IT we come across many organisations who aren’t sure exactly what to do with their data, and can easily stoop into paranoia when confronted with something they aren’t completely sure of - or comfortable with.
Luckily, we’re ready for this. I listened to all my client’s concerns and it become apparent that rather than being valid concerns they were essentially myths. With a little education from myself he soon found that moving to the cloud provided a number of great benefits, and his concerns either did not actually exist, or could be easily mitigated with some prudent thinking.
He started by telling me ”Cloud networks are easier to hack.”
Whether they're located in a private data canter or within a public cloud provider's data centre – two identical servers have the same vulnerabilities. The protection depends solely on the security infrastructure. Many companies choose to store their most sensitive data in private clouds that they protect and maintain. At Human IT we’ve invested in sophisticated cloud security technology and methods that greatly minimise the risk of attacks.
Not fazed, he fired back “Cloud tenants can spy on each other”
The concept of shared resources is what allows cloud computing to exist. This doesn’t mean there’s ‘windows’ for others in your cloud network to look in through. Think of it like tenants sharing the same floor of an office building. You may share the kitchen and bathrooms but you’re sitting in a separate, isolated, secured office with the blinds closed.
He went on, “You can’t control where your data lives”
In fact, you can. Knowledge of your data’s location simply relies on transparency from your provider. At Human IT we believe our clients should know where their data travels and how it’s protected – whether it’s moving or stationary. We’re flexible to our client’s wants and needs.
I could see him searching his mind for anything else he might have heard. Eventually he came up with “Clouds still run on machines and machines are vulnerable.”
Yes, virtual machines still depend on physical resources and, unless you want to build your own data centre, you will have to trust someone else to take care of your data. What this virtualisation has allowed for is lower cost, smarter resource usage and expanded capacity.
‘The Cloud’ conjures up images of a lightweight, floaty network that has the potential to rain. It’s not hard to see why some people become guarded when facing it. It’s important to keep in mind that it’s less of a ‘whole-new-world’ of data storage, but more an alternative with many benefits. And that client? He now has a robust cloud network for his whole business and couldn’t be happier.
