8 Top Features of Cloud-Based IT Security
Cloud-based services are on everyone’s radar these days. Cloud-based security has become a particularly hot topic by offering the ability to protect you from threats before they reach your internal IT infrastructure and have appeal in many business applications.
If you’re considering cloud-based security or just want to learn more about its best aspects, here are eight features that are generating a lot of buzz.
1. Cutting-edge perimeter firewalls
Many traditional firewalls are fairly simple, inspecting the source and destination of a incoming data packet and nothing else. More advanced models add features such as stable packet inspection, which will review a file packet’s integrity before approving or rejecting it. Cloud-based services raise the bar by offering top-of-the-line perimeter firewalls. These perimeter firewalls dig deeper, determining the type of file in the packet contents alongside the validation of source, destination and its integrity to offer cutting-edge protection.
2. Intrusion detection systems
Many industry compliance standards now require some sort of intrusion detection, and it makes sense to have this security in place with your cloud services. Since cloud-based intrusion detection works outside of your internal IT system, you can stop disaster before it strikes. Depending on your service provider, they may also update security rules for all the malicious IPs and threat signals it detects across its base of cloud users, allowing you to benefit from collective information gathering.
3. Threat event logging
As with intrusion detection, event logging of attempted attacks on your systems may be required for compliance reasons. Most cloud-based security systems log threats automatically providing a detailed log that can also help pinpoint weak spots in your systems.
4. Internal database and application firewalls
While a good perimeter firewall will block external attacks, there are still internal attacks to consider. When your infrastructure doesn’t have internal firewalls in place to limit access to sensitive applications and data, it’s not secure. Cloud-based security services can help you by having internal firewalls in your cloud security to help limit attacks that come from the inside.
5. Encryption for data at rest
When the data stored on a cloud’s infrastructure is encrypted, it can help prevent the wrong party from accessing that sensitive information. Strong encryption will help reduce the risk of stolen data being used against your clients or your company, providing a new layer of security protection.
6. Strong physical security
The physical hardware running your cloud environment is another opportunity for spies and hackers to get your most important data. Most cloud-based security solutions use secure data facilities that will ensure this doesn’t happen by employing safety measures on site, such as 24/7 monitoring and other security measures.
7. Defense evolution over time
Cloud-based security evolves over time, learning from attacks and attempted intrusions into systems. This helps your firm stay on the cutting edge of defense and threat detection.
8. Scale at a lower cost
By leveraging a large base of clients, cloud-based security systems have become an affordable way for small and mid-size companies to benefit from state-of-the-art solutions.
Cloud-based security is the defense line of the future. If you haven’t thought about it for your business before, it’s time to start exploring all your options.