Plysical Security Important for Cloud Security

We talk so much about Cloud security but often we tend to overlook the need for a strong physical security too. If you are a Cloud provider, your business depends on providing foolproof security for your customers’ data. That means not only barricading the hackers and online intruders, but also placing physical barriers to ensure that nobody can simply walk into your datacenter and walk out with your customers’ data.

So drafting a strong physical security network with all the important security features is equally important for you. So keep in mind the following parameters when drawing your physical security infrastructure:

a) Authorized Entry only: Only the people with the appropriate credentials should be given access to your datacenter. Random people should not be able to sneak into the premise.

b) Responsible & Accountable: Make your employees responsible and hold them accountable if anything goes wrong in the data center as far as security goes. Many security breaches happen due to careless and negligent attitude of the employees. Holding them accountable will make them more responsible

c) Train and Teach: Training and teaching your employees on the importance of following the basic security safety will go a long way in preventing security breaches. For example, empower them with knowledge and facts as to why tailgating is a security hazard.

d) Third Party & Contract Workers: Draw up contracts with Third party organizations and contract workers to ensure that they too follow the rules and regulations, and takes active role in preventing security breaches.

e) Security Policy: Draft a strong security policy to ensure that security breaches do not happen. Ensure that all employees, irrespective of their designation and position, follow the security policy. Additionally, impose a zero tolerance rule towards non-adherence to the security policy.

There are definitely more such ways to ensure a great physical security infrastructure. Please feel free to let me know the steps you follow.

IDC--Public & Private Cloud will key drivers in IT spending

Cloud will be business driver for the IT sector. IDC’s recent report confirmed it. It further pointed out “overall spending by public cloud service providers on storage hardware, software, and professional services will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 23.6% from 2010 to 2015, while enterprise spending on storage for the private cloud will experience a CAGR of 28.9%. By 2015, combined spending for public and private cloud storage will be $22.6 billion worldwide.”

 

Over the next five years public cloud providers as well the private cloud adopters will ensure that Cloud remain the key driver for IT spending. This demand will further drive strong growth for full range of storage solutions.

 

 

Public cloud service providers as well as major adopters of private cloud environments have five information requirements that are driving their current storage demands. These are:

• Enabling more efficient delivery of information/applications to Internet-based customers
• Reducing upfront infrastructure investment levels (i.e., cutting the cost and time associated with deploying new IT and compute infrastructure)
• Minimizing internal IT infrastructure investment associated with "bursty" or unpredictable workloads
• Lowering and/or distributing the ongoing costs associated with long-term archiving of information
• Enabling near-continuous, real-time analysis of large volumes and wide varieties of customer-, partner-, and machine-generated data (Big Data)

Build a strong SLM for the Cloud

Creating the SLAs and OLAs for a cloud environment seems to be challenging. Maybe re-writing the whole processes from the traditional technology to the cloud would be of much help for the organizations. Afterall the cloud brings in whole new scenarios and environment. Majority of the business cases in the cloud environment would be different as compared to the cases that the organizations usually create or build. Additionally, for majority of the organizations cloud is a mystery and for them it is akin to journeying into the unknown with being sure what they need and without the ability to ensure that they getting what they have asked for.

Nevertheless building a strong service level management process would be helpful to cope in the cloudified world. It might seem expensive and time consuming, but it is definitely worth the effort.

So go the cloud but know what you want and ensure that you get what you want—and exactly for the you need a strong SLM process.