Why Do Companies Need a Cloud Access Security Broker for Cloud Storage
As more and more information moves to cloud applications, how do you protect that data from the myriad of security threats and potential data loss? In the past, enterprises relied on traditional security controls to protect their data in on-premises data centers. Firewalls and proxies created a virtual perimeter that protected data going out and coming in through this perimeter.
Today, the concept of perimeter no longer applies to the cloud. Data is quickly moving outside the perimeter, and being stored in cloud services. While a cloud service provider does its job in helping to secure the underlying infrastructure of its service, protecting customer data from internal/external threats and data loss falls on the customer.
To that end, over the last few years, the Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) technology has emerged as a primary way to extend the required security controls to the cloud. CASBs are designed to offer you visibility, compliance, threat protection, and data security from a single platform and across all cloud services. Although still relatively new to the market, CASBs are growing fast as more enterprises adopt cloud applications and decommission their own data centers.
What Is CASB?
The cloud alleviates data storage problems by going beyond the limits of the hard drive and opens up unlimited space that is shared by many. However, with that extra storage room comes with increased risk of data theft or corruption. CASB software combines your security measures into one crucial point and allows system administrators to act on security breaches.
CASBs act as the IT department’s eyes into all things cloud, apps, files, and data. The cloud and its data capabilities grow at a very fast rate, and businesses face trouble keeping up. Trying to stay on top of locations, who has access to what, and whether confidential information gets shared with the wrong party causes major headaches for IT security administrators. The CASB allows you access to reports that show all the information you need to know who’s accessing what data, from what location, at what time, and from what device.
Single Point Entry
CASB offers one entry or gateway for your business to secure its entire group of cloud applications. Tasks done by a CASB program include cloud data loss prevention, in-app encryption and tokenization, access control, activity monitoring and audit capabilities, and behavior analysis. Plus, CASB starts defensive measures to detect and prevent account compromise or internal threats.
Security Capabilities
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Even if you use a mobile device to reach the cloud, your CASB still monitors and controls access. Being away from the office is no problem when you use CASB software. Let the CASB block unknown users or tell it to allow authorization for only specific files. The CASB works regardless of whether you’re there. This means unmanaged devices that lack proper security controls will be prevented from downloading sensitive data.
CASBs alert administrators when others try to gain unauthorized access to a cloud service and steal information or corrupt data using malware. Real-time monitoring lets you act quickly when a threat is imminent, and the software starts remediating action in real-time. The CASB also checks for shadow IT, the use of information-technology services and solutions without approval from the IT Department. With all the time-saving apps available, employees unwittingly risk data loss events by using risky or highly unsecured cloud applications.
The cloud gives businesses more room to store data, more access to apps, and easier file sharing tools. But in doing all this, the cloud poses security risks no one thought of several years ago. Recent technology offers a safe and secure way to watch over your data and stop hackers in their tracks. No one thought of CASBs a few years ago, but 85 percent of businesses expect to implement the software by 2020. Make sure your enterprise is covered: check into CASB for your business today.
