Tuesday, 17 May 2016

Week 5 [16-22.05.2016] Addressing cloud computing security issues



Addressing cloud computing security issues



Cloud computing is one of the hottest technical topics today, with broad-ranging effects across IT, Information Architecture, Bussiness, Software Engineering and Data Storage. That is one of many reason why I shared with you that topic. I’m interested in relationship cloud computing to security issues and any of security aspects cloud services. I’m thinking that cloud computing has got potential and it will be still upgrading in the future.



1.       What do we need to know about security in cloud?

2.       What can be outsourced to the cloud?

3.       What do we need to do get ready for the cloud?

4.       Is there anything a cloud provider can’t provide?

5.       What is your expectations from Cloud Computing?

Article:




For everyone who would like to improve his/her knowledge about IaaS:


I wish you good reading.

30 comments:

  1. Ad1 First of all we need to be certain that proper security is provided. In case of sensitive data processing, the proper security is the most important issue.
    Ad2 Practically any task that requires either lot of storage or computing power.
    Ad3 What do you mean. The answer depends from the perspective. It’s different form the cloud user perspective and provider of the cloud.
    Ad4 I don’t know. I think they can support any services providing the proper security setup is assured.
    Ad5 My expectations from CC is a cheap access to powerful computing cluster. For example Amazon Web Services (AWS). Provide very inexpensive platform for users requiring a lot of computing power dynamically allocation to the task for small amount of money.

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  2. Thank you for comment Kinga, in the beginning I would like to agree with your first answer, yes that must be proper security level for the most important files – for example we should use cipher to our date. Additional I use secondary level for authorization for files.
    I was thinking about how user should prepare his/her computer to use cloud applications.

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  3. If we talking about cloud computing the first thing that came to my mind is answer for three questions. How quickly and at what price I can take my data back from the cloud? Secondly how can I really remove them and again in what time? And the last one which security certificates may present a company offering me this kind of solution. As far as I know the are certain cases when use of the benefits of the cloud will be impossible. I mean systems that process sensitive data which has relevant regulations. For example, the requirement for adequate physical separation which protects data.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you for your comment. I would like to share with you about how can you remove your data from cloud – it is impossible, because you don’t have any physical connect to servers whose preserve data. You can only believe that your provider remove your data – that is my opinion.
      In conclusion – you are right that there are some data that you could not upload to every cloud. But if you read about Microsoft – you can process your data with agree from GIODO.

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  4. Piotr – thanks for this article. This topic about cloud computing is still very hot in every modern companies and in every modern human mind that uses this technology privately. Every day our life is changing and our views on technology too. Earlier people used local storage to collect their private or company data. We used to store HDD drives, CD or DVD discs, USB memory etc. Today this equipment in not very useful because we can storage our data in clouds. There are a lot of free proposals from big companies as Google, Microsoft, Amazon. When we storage our data in cloud we can use it everywhere and anytime we need. This is fantastic for me because I cannot remember about pendrives, discs, mobile HDDs. I can use my data at home, at work, on the train via smartphone. In my opinion this is a fantastic idea for common users. Nevertheless we still remember about security. Generally we don't know who can read or copy our data. Therefore more sensitive data should be encrypted. Security aspect is very important not only for common people but for companies most of all. For companies clouds are a good way to safe money and to improve their ability to work flexibly. Therefore big companies should use only trusted clouds provided to save their data.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you for your comment. I agree with you. We can only encrypted our date before we sent it to cloud. That is one solution that I can propose.

      Delete
  5. I must say that, well formatted post :)
    Anyway:
    1. What do we need to know about security in cloud?
    For sure, that we are not secure. We are leaving our precious data to cloud provider. We just need to remember about data encryption and so on.
    2. What can be outsourced to the cloud?
    Everything, take a look at my previous post.
    3. What do we need to do get ready for the cloud?
    Money mostly and a bit of will.
    4. Is there anything a cloud provider can’t provide?
    Probably, hard to say.
    5. What is your expectations from Cloud Computing?
    Cheap, scalable, secure infrastructure with high availability.

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    Replies
    1. well formatted post - thank you - I agree :))

      Delete
  6. On technical level we should know what kind of security policies are used, on management level we should know what is service availability (uptime, downtime), response and resolution times, how often data is backed up.
    We can outsource computations or storage, but I'm not sure about storing personal data in the cloud. I suppose that as long as company does not have their clients' assents to share their data it is illegal.
    I think that getting ready for performing computations in the cloud requires usage of proper frameworks that support distributed computing, like Apache Spark or Hadoop. I think that providers do not provide source code development so company must have their own developers' team or outsource development to some software house.

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  7. 1. What do we need to know about security in cloud?

    I believe the distributed systems are enormously hard to protect due to sheer number of integration points. It actually does not really matter if we're talking about the public cloud, or just plain private distributes systems, the number of interplay between different parts of the system makes it harder to maintain high level of security.

    2. What can be outsourced to the cloud?

    Basically we can use public clouds for anything that does not have sensitive data. Things that are really important for business continuity are not good candidates for outsourcing.

    3. What do we need to do get ready for the cloud?

    I can't answer this question in a general sense. I can only talk about specific case.
    Personally, I use cloud computing all the time, so I don't think I have to be "ready" for the cloud.

    4. Is there anything a cloud provider can’t provide?

    In theory they can provide just about anything: we have IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service), PaaS (Platform as a Service), SaaS (Software as a Service), and many more (i.e. build system in the cloud).
    I would ask: is there something they should not provide.

    5. What is your expectations from Cloud Computing?

    My biggest expectation is high availability. I also expect the low response time (but it is somehow related). Obviously, I expect my information to be protected, both in a sense of preserving them and preventing unauthorized access.

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    Replies
    1. I would ask: is there something they should not provide – good question – I don’t have any intelligent answer. I was pondering but it is difficult question.

      Delete
  8. 1.       What do we need to know about security in cloud?

    I would say until you absolutely sure that you do not break any parts inside security system you should not look inside the box.

    2.       What can be outsourced to the cloud?

    Anything that won’t compromise your privacy.

    3.       What do we need to do get ready for the cloud?

    This is a question that I shall focus especially. Every advance system have plenty of parts that could break. Until you make proper recon of this system and have learn how to maintain, make up and running all components and manage all problems you shouldn't even try to modify elements of the cloud sys.

    4.       Is there anything a cloud provider can’t provide?

    The most known problem mentioned in text is that your data can be putted in different location and be under jurisdiction of different law system.

    5.       What is your expectations from Cloud Computing?

    I shall appear in this system as an enterprise commander who can be able to manage all incidents and make progress to extend my view from the valleys to top of the mountains and I shall make a plenty trips in the system space and be not touched from viruses, malware and other exploits. My identity shall be limited to most prominent authorities known by the cloud. :-)

    And to be honest I found in computer systems almost anything that make hard to imagine what can I expect from Cloud Computing more than above poetry. ;-)

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    Replies
    1. Thank you for your comments - that was informative. I agree with your opinion.

      Delete
  9. 1. What do we need to know about security in cloud?
    In my opinion we must know which secure technic is avaliable.

    2. What can be outsourced to the cloud?
    In my opinion things which can be public
    3. What do we need to do get ready for the cloud?
    In my opinion only money
    4. Is there anything a cloud provider can’t provide?
    I don't know :) I never use cloud computing so I can't answer this question
    5. What is your expectations from Cloud Computing?
    For me , cloud computing must be faster than normall computer.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Cloud computing security is the set of control-based technologies and policies designed to adhere to regulatory compliance rules and protect information, data applications and infrastructure associated with cloud computing use.
    Cloud computing provides IT services or applications online, accessible from anywhere, anytime, and any device (smartphone, desktop PC, laptop and tablet). To be more specific, Cloud Computing allows sharing, in a Cloud provider offers an infrastructure, an application solution or a platform to any user who so requests via a simple website (also called gate) free -service.
    Cloud computing simplifies use by allowing to overcome the constraints of traditional computer tools (installation and updating of software, storage, data portability ...). Cloud computing also offers more elasticity and agility because it allows faster access to IT resources (server, storage or bandwidth) via a simple web portal and thus without investing in additional hardware equipment. The availability is immediate. In addition, the user has no infrastructure to manage is to cloud provider keep server hardware, storage, networks. The company can therefore focus primarily on its business, its business and its expertise.Contrary to popular belief, cloud computing helps ensure the access and availability of services, what is important today because companies have employees increasingly nomadic. Employees therefore need access to all their applications and their data without downtime. Cloud Computing Contracts are very important to customers as they allow to have precise answers on the guarantees offered by suppliers on SLA (service continuity levels). The availability of service provided by a cloud service provider should be between 98 and 99.99% including server downtime for maintenance or for unexpected interruptions.

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  11. 1. What do we need to know about security in cloud?

    Security in a cloud is crutial subject. Using cloud we should be certain the provider can enable us proper level of security.

    2. What can be outsourced to the cloud?

    I think the most important question is what we should not outsourced to the cloud. In my opinion despite of claimed good security of cloud platforms we should treat it with a distance and not outsource very sensitive data.

    3. What do we need to do get ready for the cloud?

    I think one of the main ideas of the cloud is that it contains necessary environments, so from the user point of view almost nothing needs to be prepared.

    4. Is there anything a cloud provider can’t provide?

    It is hard to say for me. Maybe something very unusual and specific.

    5. What is your expectations from Cloud Computing?

    In my opinion it should be secure, high accessible, cheaper than standard infrastructure.

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  12. It depends what do you need to know about cloud security. From user point of view it is crucial to ensure knowledge about effective password rules. Most of leaks from cloud services was caused by users that had weak passwords. Cloud services are very modern area and a lot of companies want to decrease infrastructure costs and they migrate their services / data to the cloud. First of all we should cooperate with trusted suppliers of this kind of services. Hosting company will ensure backups so their clients can cut costs and be sure that the data won't be lost. Hosting / coud services companies can serve us almost everything but the more custom needs, the higher price client must pay.

    (regarding 5th point) 3S: safe, stable, scalable

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    Replies
    1. yes, but we have to remember about who can read our data and where it is processing.

      Delete
  13. Hello, thanks for mentioning the subject of security in cloud computing. Without further ado let's get to the questions part:
    1. You mean the regular user? Depending on how their value and how aware are they on security it should be evaluated in accordance. Research shows that people who are not aware of security issues and are overall happy with the service usage tend to get scared when they finally get aware and their happiness drops which also decreases their usage of this given service (this happens a lot especially to the elderly).
    2. Basically anything. There is the notion of XaaS which is anything as a service.
    3. Migrating services to the cloud involves a lot of work and sometimes its not a beneficial undertaking. It alls depends on the details however.
    4. Already explained in answer 2.
    5. My expectations for Cloud Computing is to allow service providers to provide their services in the most beneficial way that is possible and overcome limitations that other (older) alternatives possessed.

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    1. it is not important what I mean - regular user or company - that is always problem with that same level of security. I think your data is that same important like company data.

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  14. So I'm actually a heavy user of Cloud services. I've been working with AWS and Google Cloud Services and I'm pretty happy with their quality. I must say that I really like the answers provided by Paweł Dyda. I agree with most of his statements.

    I'm not an expert on security and I actually think that using Cloud Services is one way to outsource security issues, especially low level problems. Still, this is not a silver bullet and best practices and design guidelines in terms of application and system architecture should be followed.

    Provided you're not dealing with sensitive data I don't see any problems with moving to the cloud. So I guess that Cloud Provider won't implement the product for you or bring you new clients ;), apart from that they offer pretty much all things needed to build a modern distributed system.

    In terms of my expectations - Paweł has answered perfectly, totally agree here.

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  15. 1. I think every person should be aware that the security of cloud computing is not complete - this knowledge helps out a lot. However, there are methods to increase data security in the cloud.
    2. Everything or almost everything, clouds offer different packages.
    3. We need to migrate data and services and think about safety.
    4. Full Guarantee of safety.
    5. Cheap, available, scalable, etc ..

    I see huge potential for cloud computing to small businesses. You can reduce starting cost of starting a new business. If you do not succeed to will lose less

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    Replies
    1. Yes, that is ideal solution for small business. You could reduce costs and be sure that your cloud servers has to be almost always on.

      Delete
  16. What we need to know about security in the cloud?
    We must be aware that security provides us with a cloud. We must entrust outsourcing only the best companies.

    What can be outsourced to the cloud?
    Providers often surprise us with their ideas using the cloud. I think that the possibilities and ideas are endless.

    Is there anything cloud provider can not provide?
    if it is, it's only a matter of time.

    What are your expectations of Cloud Computing?
    I have no expectations

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  17. 1. What do we need to know about security in cloud?
    It depends on who we are. Are we just users or architects of these systems?
    I think that as users one has to remember that anything that is shared with a cloud can be public.
    As a worker of a certain company one has to deploy security policies.
    2. What can be outsourced to the cloud?
    I think that anything which is not privite. However, there are cloud computing vendors who will offer you transferring everything to the cloud - databases, software etc.
    3. What do we need to do get ready for the cloud?
    I believe good security regulations as well as good security procedures which will reduce the risk.
    4. Is there anything a cloud provider can’t provide?
    Maybe some sophisticated architecure.
    5. What is your expectations from Cloud Computing?
    I think that high availability, low time of response and security.

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  18. 1. What do we need to know about security in cloud?
    It depends on the role in organization.

    2. What can be outsourced to the cloud?
    Computing resources for sure ;-)

    3. What do we need to do get ready for the cloud?
    We already are ready for the cloud.

    4. Is there anything a cloud provider can’t provide?
    Of course. They are just cloud providers.

    5. What is your expectations from Cloud Computing?
    Optimizing the cost of maintaining a system.

    ReplyDelete
  19. 1. What do we need to know about security in cloud?
    It depends on the role in organization.

    2. What can be outsourced to the cloud?
    Computing resources for sure ;-)

    3. What do we need to do get ready for the cloud?
    We already are ready for the cloud.

    4. Is there anything a cloud provider can’t provide?
    Of course. They are just cloud providers.

    5. What is your expectations from Cloud Computing?
    Optimizing the cost of maintaining a system.

    ReplyDelete
  20. 1. What do we need to know about security in cloud?

    Hmm, this is a very broad question. So, what do we want from cloud?

    2. What can be outsourced to the cloud?

    Computing, data, hosting, streaming.

    3. What do we need to do get ready for the cloud?

    Read?

    4. Is there anything a cloud provider can’t provide?

    My favorite beer in the middle of the night? J

    5. What is your expectations from Cloud Computing?

    RPT: Computing, data, hosting, streaming.

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  21. 1 What do we need to know about security in cloud?
    It depends on cloud provider. Big corporation like Google are using better security mechanism that small companies.
    2 What can be outsourced to the cloud?
    Long computing like training in machine learning stage.
    3 What do we need to do get ready for the cloud?
    We need a lot of professionals that are using c++ in their work. Only GPU multi-threading programming is the only way to use in efficient way cloud possibilities.
    4 Is there anything a cloud provider can’t provide?
    Today is hard to type a thing that cloud provider can't provide. Cloud is just super fast computer, it has the only disadvantage of not being free.
    5 What is your expectations from Cloud Computing?
    Fast, cheap and stable.

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  22. 1.What do we need to know about security in cloud?
    I think that first thing important to realize it's that cloud computers are normal computers mainly stored not in our houses.Other thing is that that this kind of solutions have similar vulnerabilities as your personal computer. We also shoud read very carefull service agreement and we should no how our data will be stored and who will have access to them. I know that this is very popular solution for storing data and other internet activities but we should be more carefull not only in passwords filed but also in agreement field.

    2.What can be outsourced to the cloud?
    Nowadays almost everything can be outsourced into cloud. There is a lot cloud based solution we can mentioned SaaS (Software as a service), IaaS (Infrastructure as a Service). For every your problem there is some services which can solve it and they are based in cloud. The only limit is your wallet :D.

    3.What do we need to do get ready for the cloud?
    I agree with obastemur about reading. We have got everything that we need to use cloud. Only thing that user need is brain and also ability to read license and awareness about how their data are valuable.

    4.Is there anything a cloud provider can’t provide?
    No I don't think so.
    5.What is your expectations from Cloud Computing?
    Cheaper solutions and access on every device.

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