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May
2014

8 Security Tips for Cloud Computing

May 2nd, 2014 | by admin admin | in Security Advice |    0   

Want to share photos or videos with your family? Access site drawings for your construction project? Work or study on the road? Chances are, you’re using e-mail, flash drives and FTP servers less, and cloud services more to store and share files. Dropbox, Google Drive and OneDrive allow you to store your files and access them from anywhere. Many businesses store their data off site in dedicated data centres hosted by third-party cloud providers. It can make life much more convenient.

But is it private and secure? No. Nothing is, really. Many governments have extensive surveillance programs, and Canadian privacy laws may or may not apply. And storing your data on a third party’s computer, where it can be accessed by others, carries obvious security risks. However, you can minimize your risks.

1. Avoid storing highly sensitive documents in the cloud. How much are you willing to risk a security breach with a given document?
2. Read the user agreement, and quiz your service provider. Where, specifically, is your data stored? What happens to your data when you terminate the service? Who has access to your data?
3. Use a password algorithm, such as: core word + memorable date + modifier + symbol, which could yield "Chiara010911Gmail??"
4. Use end-to-end encryption. If your mobile device or laptop gets stolen, you don’t want the thieves to access your data. Also, some cloud services encrypt all data so that they cannot view any of your information—or share it with authorities.
5. Back up your data.
6. Test your cloud service’s security. Larger businesses will even hire an ethical hacker to do this.
7. Research your service provider’s security measures. Do they use managed firewalls, antivirus and intrusion detection, as well as virtual machine (VM) security strategies? Are these issues covered in the user agreement?
8. Control access. Not everyone in your organization will require the same level of access to all data. Ensure your cloud provider can manage IDs to reflect your company’s internal access scheme.

Sources:

4 Essential Cloud Security Tips. Network World. October 10, 2011.

Top 5 Tips for Cloud Computing Security. Online Tech.

5 Tips to Keep Your Data Secure in the Cloud. CIO.

OneDrive, Dropbox, Google Drive, and Box: Which cloud storage service is right for you? CNET. February 19, 2014.

Note: This blog discusses general safety and security topics. It is not intended to provide comprehensive advice or guidance. In all matters of personal safety and security, we encourage readers to research topics in depth and consult a security professional about specific concerns.

Radius Security Vancouver, West Vancouver, North Vancouver, Burnaby, New Westminster, Richmond, Surrey, Langley, Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Ladner, Delta, Tsawwassen