How to Prepare Your Cybersecurity for Cloud Migration
The cloud is a tantalizing offer for many companies. You can increase your remote computing and data storage capabilities at an affordable cost while also shedding some responsibilities in terms of server maintenance and physical security. The problem with cloud computing is often one of cybersecurity, particularly when digital assets are being migrated. This article will detail some of the knowledge and preparation steps your business should utilize in order to maximize the security of its cloud migration process.
Why Should Cloud Security Be A Priority During Cloud Migration?
Back in 2018, the then $181 billion public cloud services industry was predicted to grow to $331 billion in a span of just four years. Alongside this growth of the public cloud sector is the steady rise of the worldwide cloud security market. According to HelpNet Security, the worldwide cloud security market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.6% from now until 2027, reaching an estimated value of $20.9 billion. While that is just under 7% of the public cloud’s estimated market value, it illustrates an important point: cloud computing requires cloud security investments. If we assume that market value is a function of total revenues, then we can roughly view cloud security as a percentage cost of the public cloud market. For example, based on the information above, companies could be spending around 6% of their revenues on cloud security. While that may not seem like a lot, 6% of billions of dollars can be a serious figure. This demonstrates how much firms value their cloud security, specifically with regards to cloud migration.
In a 2020 Cloud Threat and Security Report, the rapid rate of cloud migration was said to be outpacing the security readiness of the participating firms. In addition to this conclusion, the report found that 92% of its 2020 research respondents acknowledged a gap in their organization’s planned cloud usage and the strength of their cloud security program. What is even more shocking is that 44% of these respondents admitted that this gap was particularly wide. In light of cloud customers facing 681 million cyberattacks in a single year, organizations need to be more active when it comes to their cloud security preparedness, especially when it comes to initial cloud deployment and migration.
Preparing Your Cloud Security for Asset Migration
Cloud migration is often the stage of cloud integration where a company’s digital assets are most vulnerable. During cloud migration, firms are transferring highly sensitive information – via the internet – onto potentially public (multi-tenant, end-user accessible) servers. All of these factors can negatively contribute to the security of one’s assets on a normal day, but during migration, all of this is heightened. Because IT teams are in the middle of a complete paradigm shift in terms of techniques, responsibilities, and roles, there is a high likelihood of cloud security gaps. This is why preparation is so integral to the protection of assets during cloud migration. To help you and your IT staff execute an eventless cloud migration, here are a few steps your business can undergo when it comes to preparation.
Build a Success-Oriented Foundation
A detailed cloud foundation, or baseline, can be an effective way for businesses to establish productive security habits that they can sustain in the long-term. Building a strong foundation involves assigning the roles and responsibilities necessary for managing and securing your cloud infrastructure before, during, and after cloud migration. These roles, systems, and processes should be anchor points for any cloud strategy as well as any cloud migration approach. Considering that one of the greatest security challenges for business during cloud deployment is the gaps in coverage, role assignment, and pre-developed communication channels are excellent solutions. The benefits of such a baseline, however, extend far and beyond just cloud security as well. They can also lay the groundwork for the types of profitable habits and processes you are looking to introduce.
Establish the Parameters for Your Data Migration
Besides planning the physical migration of assets, it is important to also set out the scope of the migration, its goals, and its timeline. This will help immensely in terms of budgeting and execution. Better understanding of what you are transferring can help inform your security approach as well as your migration strategies.
Hire a Professional Cybersecurity Firm
Let’s face it; most businesses are not experts in cloud security. Rather than investing the time and resources building a team, department, and security culture from the ground up, you can outsource your cybersecurity needs to a firm that has a well-established track record. AGT is one of the few firms that offer a 360-degree approach to cybersecurity. Being able to analyze your security threats from every possible angle, we can help you plan a migration strategy that minimizes your weaknesses and maximizes your investment. To learn more about how we can support your cloud migration, contact us today.