Cloud storage has proven to be an essential service used by almost all businesses. Cloud storage is incredibly cheap and offers better performance than anything the businesses could management themselves. The one thing which makes people a bit concerned about using public cloud services is data security. Every business takes steps to ensure that its data is secure but when the data is stored on the cloud the business no longer has full control over it. While every cloud storage provider provides security guarantees, it is always a good idea to take any step you can to further enhance the security of your data. Here are 6 steps you can take to protect important business data.
Step 1 – Look at data security reports
Every cloud provider will have a record of any data security issues that it has faced. The biggest cloud storage providers are upfront about any breaches that have occurred. You should go through these reports and make sure that the cloud storage provider you use has a good track recording of protecting the data in its cloud.
Note that you will not find any major cloud storage provider that has never faced a security issue; no one is perfect. What is more important is to see how they responded to any issues they may have faced. The most important factor is how quickly they informed customers about data security issues. If the cloud provider kept the information to themselves, then they are not to be trusted. The second most important factor is how they will prevent similar issues in the future. Trustworthy cloud providers will tell you all the steps they took to shut down the vulnerabilities exposed in the last breach.
Step 2 – Encrypt sensitive data
Sometimes you may have to upload sensitive data to the cloud. This can include payroll information, the data about all your employees, medical records, business plans, and more. It is not a sustainable practice to encrypt all the data you upload to the cloud – because it will have to be decrypted before it can be used, which will result in a lot of delays. However, you can choose the data that is the most sensitive and ensure that it is encrypted before it is uploaded. Data encryption is remarkably secure as long as you pick a password that cannot be brute-forced. The highest level of password security is when you use a random password generator but make sure you never forget the randomly generated password.
Step 3 – Use a hybrid cloud model
There are some businesses in the healthcare sector and government agencies which must work with highly sensitive data. This data is too sensitive to be uploaded to the public cloud even if it is encrypted. However, such businesses and agencies also want to use cloud storage because of the incredible benefits it provides inaccessibility of data. They end up using a hybrid cloud system where they have both local storage and cloud storage. The highly sensitive material is marked for storage on their local servers only while all the other data can be transferred to the cloud.
Step 4 – Learn more about cloud security
The best way to make an informed decision about keeping your data secure is to learn more about cloud security. Read about the different technologies used by cloud service providers to keep your data safe. Many business owners are now focusing on getting a certificate of cloud security knowledge. Getting certified in cloud security will provide you the knowledge you need to assess the security information provided by different cloud providers. You will also learn more about the techniques you can use to keep your data secure when it is uploaded to the public cloud. These certifications can be achieved online or from your local university or community college.
You can also get your hands on Data Science Academy's in-demand Data Security certifications here and now.
Step 5 – Create data security policies
A lot of businesses suffer data losses not because someone was able to get through encryption on their data or can hack their cloud, but because someone shared a password with someone else. The only way to ensure true data security is to make sure that every person employed in your organization understands the steps they need to take to keep your data secure. This means that you need to train everyone about setting strong passwords, about not giving anyone access to their devices, and about other good data security practices. Make sure that no one ever writes down a password and leaves it stuck to their desk where everyone can see it. Also, using a secured VPN service is another way to data preserving.
These data security policies need to be codified and written down. They should also be included in the training materials provided to new employees to orient them with the organization's culture. Many businesses now make new employees go through data security policies and then quiz them on the policies. This practice is great not just because it trains new employees but also because it shows everyone how important data security is to your organization. This results in people taking data security policies seriously which results in a corporate culture where everyone takes ownership of their data’s security.
Step 6 – Perform security audits
Most businesses perform a security audit of their cloud service provider before they start using the cloud. The problem is that they do not perform anymore security audits after the first one. To ensure that your data is always being kept secure you need to perform periodic security audits. The type of audits you can do depends on which service provider you choose. You also need to perform these security audits within your organization. These audits will cover business processes, employee training, data security policies, and much more.
Most small businesses perform these audits themselves, but large businesses can afford to hire an external security auditor for even better results. External auditors look at everything from a fresh and unbiased perspective, which allows them to detect problems you may have overlooked.