Whenever a new innovation helps to improve IT security, there will be doubts. As with every innovation in human history there will be naysayers questioning whether using a new system or invention will expose them to unforeseen problems, or even doubting it will successfully meet its prime objectives.
So it appears to be with cloud security. Speaking this week to Ifsec Global, associate director of QCIC Simon Cook said some people are still unsure how secure the cloud is, but argued this is down to misunderstandings about what it is and how it works.
He noted: “In reality, most of the cloud exists in data centres owned by tech giants like Amazon, Microsoft and Google, or in purpose-built, security-focused, data centres.” He added that the latter will “utilise the very latest security protocols, employ teams of staff to implement frequent upgrades and assign astronomical budgets for protecting data”.
Crucially, he emphasised, such providers can offer “greater security than most individual organisations”.
Mr Cook did acknowledge that the cloud is not “completely invulnerable” as no solution is and there are many parts to the system, but it is safer than when an individual provider uses a system that may not be pitched correctly or could use out-of-date software.
Clearly, therefore, the cloud is something firmly anchored in the infrastructure of firms with the technical wherewithal to keep data safe. When it comes to cloud security testing, there really is little to worry about.
Ifsec Global noted that the cyber security sector is broadly very confident in cloud security, which is why investment in it is growing at a healthy rate and some vendors see its use as part of a software as a service model becoming the primary means of security and data storage provision in the future.
Another provider expressing confidence in the future is Eagle Eye Networks. Its chief executive officer Dean Drako said the “tipping point” had been passed for firms seeing the benefits of cloud security, a point IFsec Global suggested may have been instrumental in the major investment it received from venture capital firm Accel late last year.
Indeed, IfSec Global’s own Video Surveillance Report last year showed 44 per cent of security professionals were now using cloud security solutions and a third wanted to store their AI model in the cloud.
This upbeat view of cloud security is backed by other research, such as the latest report from Million Insights.
According to the report, which examines how the market will change between now and 2027, the sector has undergone a lot of significant change in recent years that has helped bring it to the position of strong growth now. While the report breaks down trends and projections by different regions of the globe, the overall picture of substantial growth going forward is clear.
It listed a range of companies that are driving growth and innovation in these various regions, as well as a number of new entrants to the sector.
Perhaps more significant than the individual names, however, is the fact that it is not just the familiar big IT firms who are seeking to be at the forefront of the next big thing, but smaller companies that are identifying the opportunities the cloud provides.
