Many organizations realize the benefits found in the data they collect daily. This modern approach to data allows companies to leverage data for innovation and monetization while improving security and privacy. While this may seem like a conundrum, as companies have traditionally buried their data deep in the IT architecture to prevent it from being accessible, even to employees, today it is possible to have the best of both. This process starts with the cloud.
The healthcare sector is seeing a rapid increase in cloud adoption. By 2028, it is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 18.74 percent. This trend of rapid adoption can also be seen in the financial services sector, where organizations are moving to the cloud at a rapid pace.
A study revealed that 91 percent of organizations within the financial sector are currently using cloud technology or plan to interact with it, marking a significant increase from figures reported four years earlier.
Despite the increasing adoption of public cloud platforms, many organizations still express concerns about the security and confidentiality of their data in the cloud environment. Uncertainty often arises about the scope of a cloud provider’s duty to safeguard customer data, the fate of the data once migrated to the cloud, as well as additional data security strategies beyond the providers’ offerings. public cloud.
To overcome this fear, there are four essential steps to consider when evaluating cloud data security.
Cloud Providers’ Advanced Security Measures
Public cloud providers play a critical role in maintaining a secure and resilient infrastructure. This encompasses maintaining secure data centers and ensuring the reliability and high availability of your cloud services. However, the role of these providers is not limited to infrastructure security. While it is up to customers to protect the data they transfer to the cloud, providers are stepping up to offer a suite of optional security services. They provide users with enhanced data protection and access management control.
Adhere to cloud data sovereignty
In sectors where regulation is strict, or in jurisdictions with strict controls on data privacy, maintaining compliance is vital. This is particularly important for companies required to comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), as they must navigate strict rules on the storage and transfer of customer information across borders. These organizations must ensure that any personally identifiable information (PII) transferred to the cloud is handled in a way that meets data sovereignty requirements. This includes limiting the ability to view sovereign data outside the region.
Security certifications offered by cloud providers
For many organizations, your cloud provider must meet specific security best practices and can demonstrate that it meets security certifications relevant to your industry. For example, government and public sector organizations require cloud providers to be FedRAMP certified before moving data and workloads to the cloud.
Master compliance and data security
The security capabilities offered by some cloud providers are robust, and for businesses, these offerings are sufficient to meet their data security requirements. However, businesses that need superior data security may find it beneficial to collaborate with data protection providers. These partnerships can significantly improve data integrity, provide stronger defense mechanisms against cyber threats, and enable the secure handling of sensitive data. It is especially important for organizations in highly regulated industries such as financial services, insurance, healthcare, and retail. Organizations in these fields often require full data encryption before the data migrates to the cloud. Therefore, once data is hosted in the cloud, these companies must implement the highest possible data protection standards to safeguard sensitive information, minimize breach risks, and comply with industry regulations.
Navigating the cloud: safe use of data
Organizations across industries can take advantage of cloud migration to significantly improve operational efficiency. Transitioning sensitive data to the cloud not only increases data accessibility for businesses globally, but also ensures the system’s ability to handle increasing transaction volumes without compromising performance. Therefore, they can safely migrate to the cloud to reap the benefits of a data-driven business that accelerates innovation, AI initiatives, and business intelligence. This modern approach to data not only allows organizations to leverage data for innovation and monetization, but also helps keep it safe from potential threats.
Image credit: Wayne Williams
Alasdair Anderson is Vice President of Protegrity.
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