A common concern about the cloud is that it represents an additional security vulnerability. In reality, there are security risks that are actually mitigated by the cloud. Satisfaction of compliance requirements and sophisticated security from economies of scale can be achieved by your Cloud provider. Here are 5 common misconceptions about cloud security—debunked.

1. On-premise configurations are more secure than the cloud

AWS cloud is by far more secure and cost-effective than on-premise. AWS provides enterprise encryption and security at a fraction of the price it would cost on-premise. With on-premise configuration, firewalls and encryption software need to be installed, run, and maintained. AWS cloud has encryption and security protocols built into the AWS infrastructure by default. AWS is responsible for the safety and security of clients' data, so there is continuous monitoring of the infrastructure with built-in alerts to notify customers of suspicious activity. Secure direct connections via TLS encryption for all AWS services. And AWS is built for compliance e.g., PCI, HIPAA, SCO Federal Government.

2. The Cloud suffers from more breaches

When the correct security policies for preventing attacks and detecting them are implemented, attacks are no more threatening to the cloud than any other piece of infrastructure. Hackers are going after servers that haven’t been set up correctly, whether they are in the cloud or off-premise. 

3. Data is more secure when it is physically controlled

Various high profile security breaches have served to highlight that the physical location of the data matters less than the access and associated controls. AWS data centers have controls that make security possible: 

• • Secure design
  • Business continuity and disaster recovery
  • Physical access
  • Monitoring and logging
  • Surveillance and detection
  • Device management
  • Operational support systems
  • Infrastructure maintenance 
  • Governance and risk

4. Cloud security tools and capabilities are not ready for my business needs

AWS provides more than 20 services and tools that are more cost-effective than 3rd party tools for on-premise for: 

• • Data protection
  • Identity and access management
  • Infrastructure protection
  • Threat detection and continuous monitoring
  • Compliance and data privacy

5. Maintaining cloud security is far too difficult

That is where Alacriti Consulting partners with you to maintain policies, procedures, tools, and services so you can focus on your core competency.

Alacriti Consulting, an Advanced Consulting Partner of AWS; provides consulting, migration, management services, and security assessments for AWS environments. Whether you need assistance with data migration or to prepare for compliance audits, Alacriti is here to help. For more information please call (908) 791-2916 or email awsconsulting@alacriti.com.