There has been much speculation on whether or not the cloud can positively impact data security. I believe that cloud computing can help improve data security for many reasons, but first I would like to give a brief explanation as to what cloud computing means.
The Cloud, otherwise known as cloud computing, is the means by which users can manage, store, and access data via the internet and not on their hard drive. Users have the ability to access their data on the cloud with the use of an internet connection. A critical advantage of using cloud computing for managing data is that, in the event of a hardware breakdown or issue, a user’s data would not be affected due to the fact that their data is not on their hard drives.
The primary way that cloud computing can positively affect data security is that this version of computing has a set of security protocols that have the objective of protecting very critical data, information, and even transactions.
The cloud can also aid in defending against DDoS (Denial of Service) attacks, which are cyber security attacks that are orchestrated to prevent users from having the ability to access their networks or servers. These attacks are a threat to cyber security, considering that they have the ability to slow down servers and even shut them down. Cloud computing can help defend against these attacks, as a goal of the cloud is to stop and process large flows of internet traffic that are aimed at a company’s servers. These DDoS attacks are normally found through hackers trying to hide in these large flows of internet traffic to breach the cloud servers.
Another way in which cloud computing can positively affect data security is through the protocols that are in place which help defend against outside parties tampering, obtaining, and sharing the data that is stored in the cloud.
Critics have pointed out that cloud computing is comparable to a double-edged sword, considering that the cloud can positively affect data security, yet at the same time introduce other data risks into the equation. Some of these risks include data location and data segregation being compromised, which is a factor that can be very critical to businesses or even states.
Nonetheless, I do believe that the cloud can become very helpful in securing data, especially since cloud computing is fairly new and only has the ability to grow, develop, and fix some of the risks that are attributed to this version of computing.