Technologies such as occupancy management, automated visitor management and touchless access control applications are increasing in demand – turning up the dial on interoperability as organizations seek to deploy best of breed solutions. To power these technologies, Artificial Intelligence (AI), cloud storage and the Internet of Things (IoT) are driving new functionalities and new uses from existing technologies to deliver customized applications for pandemic related health, safety and security issues. While this year might bring a number of uncertainties, we remain confident that the industry will continue to see growth and demand for these trends.
Accurics unveiled its latest research, “Accurics Cloud Cyber Resilience Report,” which highlights security risks identified in cloud native environments. The findings reveal an increased adoption of managed infrastructure services and the emergence of new cloud watering hole attacks. Of all violations identified, 23% correspond to poorly configured managed service offerings – largely the result of default security profiles or configurations that offer excessive permissions.
An example of how businesses are benefitting from integrated cloud-based systems would be in the retail industry. Retail end users have integrated their security camera network, heat-mapping and video analytics technology with a cloud-based system so they can remotely monitor who is in their store. The heat-mapping and analytics technology also showcases where customers are spending the most time in their store, providing retailers with insight as to where they can place specific item displays or promotional items. This information can also be used to inform on if a specific location in a store needs additional signage to encourage social distancing, or even if it needs increased camera coverage within a store. The practical applications of integrated cloud-based systems and other security technology are nearly endless.
Risk assessment is a key element of any discussion around security and the cloud. Security is measured in terms of how much risk there is of something happening – and nothing is without risk. So, when it comes to evaluating a move to cloud desktops, companies are really looking at how it will reduce risk.
While applications are a key part of many cloud deployments, rapid adoption of the cloud and the ongoing evolution of apps both create new risks. Careful attention must be given to secure the growing application threat vector. New strategies and solutions, including Web Application Firewalls specifically designed to protect apps from advanced threats, are required to help mitigate these risks.
In the age of heightened public cloud adoption and widespread cloud Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) usage, cybercriminals are making use of OAuth – a permissions delegation and authorization protocol – to compromise cloud environments. As such, controlling which applications users interact with has become a business imperative. Let’s take a closer look at what OAuth is, the role it plays in allowing users to access resources across environments, the ways attackers are abusing OAuth and what organizations can do to better protect their cloud data.
In a new alert, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) announced that it is aware of several recent successful cyberattacks against various organizations’ cloud services. Threat actors are using phishing and other vectors to exploit poor cyber hygiene practices within a victims’ cloud services configuration.
It’s within this expanded terrain for cyberattacks that the security trends of 2021 and beyond are taking shape. Workers are engaging with company resources from diverse locations. At the same time, businesses have ramped up their digitalization journeys to be more flexible and agile after COVID-19’s disruption of supply chains. The result is a dynamic tech environment where the continuity of business operations – and ultimately market competitiveness – will rely on robust cyber protections.
Modern cloud based security systems and surveillance solutions have come a long way. While some companies continue to rely on the older technology they are accustomed to, traditional systems are continually being phased out in favor of the flexibility offered by cloud-based solutions. Cloud-based systems have a myriad of advantages over older, on-premises security systems, and there is rarely an instance where an on-premises system is preferred over a cloud-based framework when installing a new setup.
While there are several security concerns that cloud users must address in the long run, here are three critical areas that must be given immediate attention, especially now as organizations are planning to scale their remote work setup, and nine best practices organizations must follow to ensure optimal safety of their cloud instances.
