How to keep your data protected in the cloud?

This is a guest post by David Malmborg.

Many businesses, perhaps yours is one of them, have moved to cloud storage.  Keeping data in the cloud is an effective way for companies of all sizes to store information and save costs at the same time.  It eliminates the risk of overwhelming the LAN and keeps information safe in the event of a natural disaster or hardware failure.

What many companies do not take into account, however, is the importance of protecting that data.  Many make the assumption that all aspects of cloud security are being handled by the provider of the cloud service. This is not always true.

Responsibility for cloud data protection

Leaving the security of your company’s valuable information to another service, without taking any precautions at your end, is like hiring a security company to protect your home and keeping the back door unlocked.  This is your property and you need to assume responsibility for the security of that property.  This means that you should be employing security measures on your end such as IT system checks, establishing additional backup methods to safeguard the data, and keeping company passwords out of the wrong hands.

Encrypt your data in cloud storage

With the growing number of businesses embracing the cloud, hackers and cyber thieves are putting more attention on breaking into the cloud to access that data and cause system problems.  Richard Steinnon, a cyber security expert says:  “All data should be encrypted all the time in the cloud.  View your provider as the enemy.”

Data recovery and transfer

Data breaches are a constant concern for companies and your business could be at risk of losing important information stored in the cloud through a hacking job or through a shut-down of the provider’s system in the case of a failure at their end.  Keeping your data in more than one location will ensure that you can always find it and it will help keep it safe from unauthorized access/changes.

There are many companies that offer off-site data storage which you can use in addition to cloud storage.  Some cloud providers may be able to send you backups of the data on the cloud through traditional methods such as hard disks and DVDs. For more information on storage in the cloud, visit dell.com.

Passwords

Many people groan when they are told that they have to password protect their documents, but passwords are a simple and effective way to protect your data in the cloud.  Greg Petri, an independent consultant that focuses on cloud computing, recommends long and difficult passwords.  “A strong password will consist of a minimum of 8 characters with at least one of the following; uppercase character, lowercase character, a number, and a special character ie. * $ % @, etc.”

Using simple and short passwords will make it easier for a hacker to break into your documents and accounts.  Passwords should be used to protect every document that you don’t want to be seen by others.  To make sure that you don’t lose your passwords, you can create an Excel spreadsheet to record them.  This document could be protected with a strong password that you can remember.

Using these methods and understanding that no technological system is perfect, you will be more able to enjoy all the benefits of what the cloud can do for you and your business.

Author Bio

David Malmborg works with Dell. When he isn’t working he enjoys hiking, spending time with family and researching new technologies. He is currently learning more about enterprise solutions and recommends following this link for more information.