Page 34 - Security Today, September 2018

Just Say “Yes” to the Cloud
Blending digital and traditional security at your facility
BCy Peter Boriskin
loud technology began with the concept of grid com- puting—the idea that we could replicate the way a power grid in a country was set up. It was designed so no single fault could take down the entire system or compromise our data. It was an insurance policy. It
was security through redundancy, but cloud computing has become much, much more.
What the cloud provides today is not just that redundancy, but also a rental service for businesses of all sizes, or even individuals, to take advantage of always-available online storage that is managed by professionals.
For years, several enterprise software solutions required robust storage on securely-built servers located in-house. These servers re- quired an IT department to monitor them, and a level of facilities management to ensure they remained temperature controlled.
With the introduction of the cloud, small- and medium-sized businesses no longer need to worry about setting up and maintain- ing a server array to store corporate information. Today, all com- panies are able to store data in a location that is monitored 24/7 by IT professionals who ensure uptime, watch for potential failures and
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actively work to halt intrusions.
The cloud has become a core enabler of bringing sophisticated
enterprise solutions to all businesses.
Is the Cloud for Me?
Those who are skeptical of the cloud may find comfort in the fact that it offers myriad benefits to many Fortune 500 companies, as well as one of the most cautious entities on earth: the government. Yes, the government is now taking on a cloud-first strategy where server deployment only occurs if a cloud solution is completely unavailable. The traditional method of storing data is no longer considered a vi- able solution except in the most dire of circumstances.
These groups are typically using a blend of public, consumer fac- ing cloud services for file sharing and privately controlled servers to create their own cloud for file storage. That said, they are still taking advantage of the same benefits anyone can leverage from a consumer- facing cloud: reduced cost, simple storage, and, of course, those im- pressive security features.
Further, the cloud is flexible in ways that adapt specifically to an organization’s needs. There may be a situation where it makes sense
CLOUD SECURITY
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