Yes, we have heard about it, we are all awed by it and it has certainly delivered as much as had been promised – Cloud computing is taking over legacy hosting architectures and the world is a better place for it.

Since the introduction of Cloud servers, and the technology behind it in general, business are performing much better. They have slashed down their costs to a fraction of what it used to be when they had to have servers and farms in their own backyards. They have been able to provide more efficient services with lower down time due to the fact that data can be accessed from multiple locations. They have been able to easily scale up their resources without much fuss or any inconveniences to their customers. They have also managed to access new markets on a global scale.

But, is Cloud computing without any flaws? The short answer is “no.” One major issue that has still been carried over from the old way of doing things is that of security and how it should be handled. Although major progress has been made in ensuring the security of data and its privacy, there are still some concerns that need to be addressed and that you, as a client or a business owner, should be aware of.

What are they? Well, to name a few:

Third Party Data Management

Moving to the Cloud means you hand over control of your servers to a third party. Even though professional hosting providers are under contract to safeguard your data you still have to consider the risk that their staff (whether current or former) will be able to peek into your servers.

So far, the best way available to deter nosy Cloud hosting providers (or their staff) from accessing any useful information is to keep your data encrypted. That way, only you will be able to make sense of it.

Inter-Visibility of Data

One way Cloud hosting providers cut their costs and maintain efficiency is, unfortunately, by clumping more than one of their clients onto the same server. Unless they have mastered their authorization and access configurations there is a risk of one client being able to view and access the data of the others sharing the server.

One can only imagine the financial disaster that your business can face should your competitor be able to see every transaction you make.

Greater Exposure and Risk

A Cloud server, due to its global accessibility, has a much larger exposure and thus stands to also be exposed to a bigger security threat. There are more people who can try to hack into it and that means the chances of one or more of them succeeding are also increased.

While hosting providers can counter this by putting in place all the obstacles they can to prevent unauthorized access – firewalls, antivirus, proper authentication procedures, etc. – clients can minimize their risks by making sure only the absolutely necessary data is sent out and stored on cloud servers. You might even consider using a hybrid method: instead of sending all your data to be stored on the Cloud you can opt to hold back on critical and confidential data and keep it on your own servers. This way, even if someone gains access to the data on the Cloud, it will be partial and of no value to them.

It Can be Used by them Too

Just like moving to the Cloud gives you more power to process data and handle large amounts of traffic, it can also provide hackers the power to do much more damage. They too can harness the power of Cloud computing to their advantage.

A hacker might need years to break an encryption key if he were to use just the resources that he owned. But, with the help of a series of Cloud servers that same hacker might achieve the intended result within a matter of minutes.

This of course means Cloud hosting providers have the added responsibility of making sure they do not harbor infected software, malware or similar harmful software.

Added Layers to Consider

Apart from worrying about the security of the hardware and the operating system (OS), Cloud computing adds that of the virtualization layer.

Cloud computing is, after all, a virtual concept (for the most part) and this added virtual layer brings its own requirements which hosting providers should ensure doesn’t become a weak spot.

Jurisdiction and Ownership of Data

A relatively new concept that was introduced with the birth of Cloud computing is that of the trans-border nature of data. While everything might be done to keep data secure in one country, it might not be so in those that it has to pass through to reach the consumers. In some cases, clients are oblivious about where exactly it is that their own data is being held.

This raises its own challenges in ensuring the security and privacy of data. Add to it the various data laws that are in as many countries as there are and you can picture the chaos that can ensue should legal issues arise.

While encryption can help with the former problem, the latter is open to legal interpretation of local laws.

As we have seen, although Cloud computing is the way forward but it still needs some serious considerations and awareness before being fully adopted.