How do you protect data in the cloud?

1 Assess your cloud environment

Before you move your data to the cloud, you need to understand the characteristics and requirements of your cloud environment. This includes the type of cloud service model (IaaS, PaaS, or SaaS), the level of shared responsibility between you and the cloud provider, the location and jurisdiction of the data centers, and the security and privacy policies and controls of the cloud provider. You should also conduct a risk assessment and a gap analysis to identify any vulnerabilities or gaps in your cloud security posture.

3 Implement access controls

Another important aspect of data protection in the cloud is access control. Access control refers to the process of granting or denying access to your data based on the identity, role, and privileges of the users or entities. You should implement access controls that follow the principle of least privilege, meaning that you only grant the minimum level of access necessary for each user or entity to perform their tasks. You should also use multi-factor authentication, password policies, and audit logs to enhance your access control mechanisms.

4 Backup and restore your data

Even if you have encrypted and secured your data in the cloud, you still need to backup and restore it regularly. Backup and restore are essential for data recovery in case of data loss, corruption, or deletion due to human error, hardware failure, natural disaster, or cyberattack. You should backup your data frequently, using a reliable and secure backup service. You should also test your backup and restore processes periodically, to ensure that they work as expected and that you can restore your data quickly and accurately.

5 Monitor and detect anomalies

The final tip for data protection in the cloud is to monitor and detect anomalies. Monitoring and detecting anomalies refer to the process of collecting and analyzing data from your cloud environment, such as logs, metrics, alerts, and events, to identify any unusual or suspicious activities or behaviors that may indicate a potential breach or incident. You should use tools and techniques such as cloud security monitoring, cloud security analytics, cloud security information and event management (SIEM), and cloud security orchestration, automation, and response (SOAR) to monitor and detect anomalies in your cloud environment.

6 Respond and remediate incidents

If you detect an anomaly or a breach in your cloud environment, you need to respond and remediate it as soon as possible. Responding and remediating incidents refer to the process of containing, analyzing, eradicating, and recovering from a breach or incident, as well as reporting, documenting, and improving your incident response plan. You should follow the best practices and guidelines for incident response in the cloud, such as using the NIST SP 800-61 or the SANS Incident Response Process, collaborating with your cloud provider and other stakeholders, and leveraging the cloud-native capabilities and tools for incident response.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?