Recent hacker attacks show need for improved cloud security

Thursday, January 26, 2012

The culture that surrounds the concept of hacking often has a nostalgic, fight-the-system feel to it that is only encouraged by movies like The Matrix. However, the brutal reality is that hacking causes problems, like identity theft and fraud, and coordinated attacks can steal massive amounts of information or shut down critical infrastructure. With many companies upgrading to cloud computing technology, managed security services are more important than ever.

Major hacking groups like Anonymous are dedicated more to political awareness than criminal acts, but the fact remains that they were able to recently shut down a number of government websites for prolonged periods of time, including one belonging to the U.S. Department of Justice. While this website was not technically on the "g-cloud," it still showcases how security measures can fail in the event of a large-scale attack. Information stored on a public cloud is both accessible and vulnerable from any location.

In response, organizations like the Cloud Security Alliance are trying to come up with standards that promote cloud security transparency. That way, global managed services can incorporate continually improving security measures and collaborate with partners in the case of a coordinated attack.