Data theft and data loss- were just among the most common cloud computing security issues. Knowing the possible issues can help you mitigate them or avoid their likelihood, when possible.
So let us discuss further the most common issues in cloud computing security below. Let us begin.
Most Common Cloud Computing Security Issues
1. Data theft and data loss:
Data theft and data loss can happen in any IT environment. These security issues are most common in the cloud environment for many reasons.
For example, cloud environments use different storage mechanisms based on virtualization. The data is in a virtual server and not on a dedicated device.
So, if an attacker gets access to the hypervisor, he/she can steal the virtual machine’s data and then decrypt it to obtain the data contents.
Hackers can also steal the backup tapes containing sensitive data and restore them on their systems to obtain the original information.
The cloud provider might lose your data by mistake or intentionally. Different service providers have different policies for securing your information. But most of them use physical storage devices such as tape or disk drives to store your information, which may fall into the wrong hands.
How to mitigate the risk:
To mitigate the risk of data theft and data loss, you should avoid storing sensitive data in the cloud. You can use data encryption and secure backup tapes to safeguard your information.
An organization should choose a cloud service provider that applies appropriate security measures to protect your data. You should also have a formal contract with the cloud provider to manage your data.
An adequate physical security system is also necessary for the cloud environment. The physical security system should include guards, cameras, fire alarms, and so on.
2. Misconfiguration
Another common issue is a misconfiguration. If you are not careful about how you use cloud resources, your cloud environment can be misconfigured due to incorrect settings.
For example, if you allow an unauthorized user to access your system, that user might abuse the access privileges. So, the system is misconfigured.
Also, if you don’t pay attention to the security settings of your cloud environment, it can be misconfigured. For example, if you turn off the default firewall settings on your virtual machine, this VM is misconfigured.
How to mitigate the risk:
To avoid misconfiguration issues, you should keep all the security settings of your cloud environment up-to-date. You should also have a formal contract with the cloud service provider to manage your data. The organization must also have security policies to manage cloud resources.
3. Security Mismanagement
An organization may not have sufficient expertise in managing cloud resources properly. This may result in security mismanagement issues such as:
If an organization lacks expertise in managing its data center and operating systems, it may not know how to secure its cloud environment properly either. So it can lead to data security issues.
How to mitigate the risk:
An organization must have enough specialists to manage its cloud environment, including security experts.
4. Over-privileged Users
Another common issue is over-privileged users. If you grant users access privileges to all of your cloud environments, they can cause several issues. For example, the users can delete your data or destroy your virtualized environment.
How to mitigate the risk:
To avoid issues due to over-privileged users, you should limit access privileges to only those resources that are necessary for the user to perform his job. You should also have a formal contract with the cloud service provider to manage your data. Hence, making it important to test the security settings of your cloud environment regularly.
