When the Russian futurist poet Mayakovsky wrote the poem “Cloud in Pants,” he certainly did not anticipate what “the cloud” would mean to a person of the 21st century. However, the tendencies that poets felt foretold the time we live in today. Today, the cloud means much more than it once did, stretching across the skies. Cloud now implies an entire infinity of space found in the digital realm. Cloud is a term used to describe a distributed computing infrastructure that allows access to various services, resources, and applications over the internet. Cloud technology enables users to quickly access resources, scale them as needed, pay only for what they use, and have the ability to access data and applications from various devices and locations. This text will discuss how much attention is paid to data security in the Cloud, as well as the advantages and challenges associated with the Cloud.
Security – From phrase to essence
When we talk about security, in the broadest sense, it can be viewed as a state of freedom from danger, harm, or risk for an individual, organization, or system. More narrowly focused, information security involves protecting data from unauthorized access, loss, theft, or damage. This field encompasses a range of activities, techniques, and policies applied to ensure the security and integrity of data, as well as the functionality of the systems that process it. The modern era brings numerous challenges regarding Cloud technology and IT resource management. The impact of the Cloud on technology and digitalization is multifaceted. It allows organizations to quickly and efficiently move their business to the digital sphere, using Cloud resources for data storage, application access, and process automation. Furthermore, Cloud technology provides the foundation for developing new technological solutions such as artificial intelligence, big data analytics, the Internet of Things (IoT), and other innovations that support digital transformation. Cloud technology is extremely significant in the modern age due to its ability to enable more efficient IT resource management, facilitate access to applications and data, increase business scalability and flexibility, reduce infrastructure costs, and support organizations’ digital transformation.
The issue of security is certainly a very important chapter. Data is stored on remote servers in the Cloud, making it susceptible to various threats such as unauthorized access, hacking, data theft, resource misuse, and the like. What makes data vulnerable in a Cloud environment includes insufficient data encryption, weak security policies and practices, lack of monitoring and access management, inadequate protection against DDoS attacks, and other security threats that can arise in Cloud infrastructure. Therefore, it is crucial for organizations to move from merely talking about security to actually implementing appropriate protection measures. Here we can talk about encryption, authentication, authorization, regular system updates, as well as staff training and implementing security policies.
Security as a Priority
Protecting data in a Cloud environment is a crucial area that requires attention and responsibility to ensure the security, integrity, and confidentiality of data. Identifying threats and risks is the first step toward establishing effective protection measures. This includes analyzing potential threats such as unauthorized access, hacking attacks, malware, data loss due to failures or errors, and potential threats arising from sharing resources with other users in the Cloud. Understanding these threats allows organizations to identify points of vulnerability and take appropriate protective measures.
Another important point is security policies and practices for data protection. This primarily involves establishing clear security policies that define rules and procedures for protecting data in a Cloud environment. Policies should cover segments such as data encryption, access control, identity and access management, regular system updates. Authentication refers to the process of verifying the identity of users or devices to ensure that only authorized users have access to data. Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is particularly important for additional security. Authorization refers to granting privileges and access rights to data only to authorized users or applications. Continuous system and network monitoring is essential for detecting suspicious activities or anomalies that may indicate a security incident. Log monitoring and data analysis enable organizations to respond quickly to threats and take appropriate steps to protect data.
If we briefly return to the early 20th century, when avant-garde art celebrated the dynamism of the modern world and was called futurism, we see that we now live in the very time that prophetic art announced back then. Interestingly, an entire ecosystem that exists somewhere in the ether bears the name of a matter that weaves various shapes across the sky, expands, sometimes disappears, and then returns. Perhaps this name represents mere coincidence, or perhaps its elasticity and ability to connect various parts of the sky symbolize the origin of the Internet. Either way, now that it has expanded so much, we must always be aware of the security issues within it.
Achieving security through better understanding of the Cloud
Cloud technology essentially represents a revolutionary concept. This technology brings with it a range of features that make it extremely useful and efficient. One of the key features is elasticity – the ability to adjust resources to our needs, which allows for flexibility and optimization of resource usage. In addition, pay-as-you-go is another significant feature that allows us to pay only for the resources we use, reducing costs and increasing efficiency. The connection between Cloud technology and the development of information technology and the internet is clear. The development of fast internet connections and mobile devices has contributed to the expansion of Cloud services and enabled us to access resources from any location and device. This connection is key to the digital transformation happening in all aspects of our lives – from business and education to entertainment and communication. As we mentioned, the Cloud represents an infrastructure concept that enables access to resources that include computers, networks, servers, applications, data, and more. The ability for these resources to be adjusted to user needs shows that the Cloud is quite elastic, making it a whole new universe.
There are three basic types of Cloud services:
- Public Cloud refers to public services for the general public. This type of Cloud is suitable for small and medium-sized companies, startups, or individual users. An example of a public Cloud is Amazon.
- Private Cloud is intended for a single organization and is usually located within its boundaries, either physically or virtually. It provides a significantly higher degree of control, privacy, and security.
- Hybrid Cloud combines elements of public and private Clouds. Organizations can use both types of resources according to their needs and strategy. Hybrid Cloud enables flexibility, scalability, and cost optimization.
The application of Cloud services encompasses various sectors and fields, including IT infrastructure, application development and testing, data storage and analysis, IoT (Internet of Things), artificial intelligence, machine learning, virtual reality, and other areas.
