Cloud computing offers multiple benefits to any business organization, the most significant being in terms of IT cost savings. For instance, the lack of on-premises infrastructure removes operational costs associated with the setup in the form of power, air conditioning, and administration costs.
It is, for this reason, we find companies of all shapes and sizes slowly adapting to this new technology and cloud adoption is accelerating faster than previously anticipated. That said, risks associated with this technology has also seen an upward trend. As traditional IT boundaries have disappeared, adversaries have come up with new designs of attacks.
Despite having deployed, an assortment of security tools, scores of IT teams are finding it increasingly difficult to prioritize and counter relevant threats. The adoption of some methods, for the sake of security, invariably lead to compromise on end-user productivity leading to rejection in adopting a satisfying solution. This has deleterious effects as bypassing the step to detect suspicious behavior can lead to early signs of an attack going unnoticed.
IT security in Cloud Computing
To offer a viable solution for this challenge, Microsoft is harnessing the power of intelligence. This would help it in tackling attack vectors of today’s cloud and mobile world. The intelligence, Microsoft claims would enable it to build vibrant ecosystem based on security-related signals and insights.
The platform investments will cover four categories: identity, apps and data, devices, and infrastructure.
Identity
This capability would enable identification of threats and mitigate them instantly with multi-factor authentication before it causes any unwanted damage. Moreover, it would enable organizations to respond quickly by automatically elevating access requirements based on risks.
Apps and Data
The focus of this category would be to enable employees to use cloud apps without losing control of corporate data. This would eventually help in boosting productivity with cloud access while keeping information protected.
Devices
The category envisages enhancing the security of cloud-enabled devices by enabling BYOD. This would automatically help in identifying suspicious endpoints and respond promptly to targeted attack by encrypting data.
Infrastructure
Educating employees on the importance of data security and how they can implement best practices is essential to identify early signs of compromise via behavioral analysis of this approach and respond aptly to gain greater control across on-premises and cloud environments.
One of the main advantages of cloud computing has been improved mobility whereby data is available to a user, no matter where you are in the world. By fulfilling these four necessities of modern IT security, cloud computing network can be made more robust and secure. The move from Microsoft is a perhaps, a step in the right direction.
You can learn more about learning more about security best practices by downloading this free eBook from Microsoft titled Protect your Data: 7 ways to improve your security posture.
