In the past few decades, computing has evolved from room-sized boxes that were highly specialized to tiny mobile devices that are extremely accessible. According to a recent TechTarget report, this progression has led to the gradual recession of the security perimeter.
In the early days of computing, individuals literally took strips of paper with custom code written on them and sent them through machines where the code would be processed, the news source said. If there was any remote problem with the code, the system would not run it. Instead, it would be sent up to the IT specialists and they would analyze the program and find any problems. Since then, the way software is run on computers has changed, with personal computers and mobile devices making applications accessible to just about anybody and the system of checks and balances that provide security slowly disappearing.
According to the news source, cloud computing has taken this traditional perimeter that surrounds applications and systems and made it completely disappear. In some ways, this is a good thing, as it means more users are putting their applications back in the hands of the experts.
To illustrate this, the report pointed to the plight of many small businesses. In an effort to keep their operations secure, most small companies keep a security expert on staff. However, most of these experts are not nearly as qualified as the kind of IT professional providing security support to cloud vendors.
The news source explained that the difference in expertise between the average IT security professional and the experts employed by cloud vendors is not one of degree, but of magnitude. As a result, cloud computing not only improves security for many of its users, but also for the world at large by eliminating many of the bot computers and similar devices that are taken over by hackers and not noticed by low-level security professionals.
Cloud computing, whether in the form of application or IT Infrastructure services, has the potential to improve security for businesses. The risk that is often associated with the cloud comes more from the policies and procedures surrounding the cloud, not the technology itself. Because of this, businesses can use a good service level agreement and an understanding of their responsibilities in cloud data protection to actually improve security operations when enlisting a cloud solution.
