During the pandemic, enterprises embraced a radical shift of moving their businesses to public and private cloud environments. But many of them are still struggling with cloud security threats. What the rising threats are and how to mitigate them are necessary parameters to focus on.
Today, most enterprise application deployments, business models, operations, and other essential functionalities now reside in the cloud.
Since cloud storage has made it feasible for every enterprise to transform into a digital entity, it has become even more essential for them to handle extensive data stored securely and streamline operations into a safe zone, thus, keeping all entities safe from threat actors’ reach.
Unfortunately, cloud advancements have garnered the attention of cybercriminals, and there always remains a high chance of information breaches, data theft, virus attacks, ransomware, malware attack, and many other cyber-attacks. Now, it’s imperative for CISOs and IT leaders to work together to mitigate cloud security threats and stay aware of the latest cloud security threats.
Here are the top cloud security threats in 2023 and the proven strategies IT leaders and CISOs can use to handle them.
Malware Attacks
Malware attacks are the most potent cloud threat that organizations may encounter ahead of 2023. These attacks can take serious forms, such as Trojans and ransomware that can steal sensitive information, disrupt business operations, and even hold data hostage. With malware attacks, companies fail to maintain a cloud strategy plan efficiently.
Solutions:
To mitigate the malware attack risks, organizations can strategize some efficient plans such as:
- IT leaders and security teams should keep all software in cloud technology, including necessary systems updated with the latest security patches.
- Leverage anti-malware software to detect malware in servers and systems and remove it immediately.
- Regularly back up data in the cloud and maintain an offline repository so that organizations can restore data without additional expenditure.
But, since in the cloud, data is quite tricky to handle and set under control, there is an environment of endless data sprawl. Therefore, it’s essential to continuously monitor cloud systems to avoid malware attacks.
Also Read: Best Strategies to Recover from a Ransomware Attack
ATO Attacks
The goal of account takeovers (ATO) cloud security threats is to enable attackers to gain unauthorized access of a user’s account by obtaining login credentials from cloud networks and systems. The attacks like these have grown and evolved along the cloud infrastructure and as a result, cause businesses to damage and trouble all essential accesses.
Solutions:
What should organizations do in such circumstances? These strategies can help the organization to overcome cloud threats.
- Enable multi-factor authorization to add an extra layer of security. Authorization using fingerprint, code, and one-time passwords is helpful.
- Strategize implementation of automation that works for unusual login attempts, detect account activities, and authorize personnel to change information fed in cloud stacks.
- Enable two-factor authentication (2FA) that hinders the access of cloud stacks beyond the authorized entity of the business.
ATO attacks can have a significant impact on financial losses as this cloud threat primarily hits key accounts of businesses having confidential information and data.
Misconfigurations of Cloud Services
Cloud service misconfigurations are a common cloud threat. The objective of this threat is not to cause any data breach or denied access to information. The goal of this threat is misalignment and misconfigurations of cloud stacks with business operations. As a result, this leaves the cloud environment vulnerable to attack causing damage to cloud systems. This attack is the answer to “what happens if businesses lose cloud security control?” Or it happens when changes are made to the cloud setting without any testing or errors aftermath.
Solutions:
- Implement cloud security best practices using industry-standard frameworks such as CIS or NIST.
- Leverage advanced cloud security tools for automatic detection and fixing misconfigurations.
- Uplift virtual private clouds (VPCs) and network segmentation to create security walls in the cloud.
- Establish processes of approvals for testing and errors to mitigate the cloud threat or avoid vulnerabilities entering the cloud infrastructure.
Cloud service misconfigurations are concerns that lead to data breaches, unauthorized access, or other cloud security threats. Security teams must proactively identify and address cloud service misconfigurations and maintain a secure and submissive cloud environment.
Also Read: Ransomware Attack Targets VMware ESXi Servers Using an Old Vulnerability
Data Breach
Data breaches result from theft mostly due to weak credentials or highly complex accessibility systems. These reasons are pillars of stubborn cloud attacks. In fact, inadequate cloud configurations or no protection runtime leave data vulnerable to theft. Data breaches pose the most frequent and severe risk to businesses in the cloud.
Solutions:
- Enable encryption at the cloud network’s edge, which safeguards sensitive information of the business. Gartner report: Encryption Key Management reveals that by 2023, 40% of organizations will have a hybrid, multisilo, and multi-cloud data encryption strategy, up from more than 5% today.”
- IT leaders should regularly assess the efficacy of existing encryption protocols to strengthen the security walls. If required, they must also change the credentials of access to the authorized body of business
- Enable MFA in mobile applications for end users to avoid user threats.
Stay Aware of Cloud Threats Every time!
CISOs should prioritize strengthening their cloud security efforts by understanding the significance and worth of each security wall. By doing this, organizations will be able to move confidently and take advantage of cloud technology by thanksgiving these theft solutions.
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