CLOSING ENTRY: Trust but verify

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More businesses — small, medium, and large ones — are embracing cloud computing: the delivery of computing services over the internet. The good news is that cloud services can offer faster and more reliable application updates with greater flexibility. It may bring economies of scale since businesses would only pay for the cloud services they use, and adding new features will be on an as-needed basis. However, cloud providers can also put your sensitive data at risk, painting a digital target on its back.

Businesses that go with a cloud provider can generally avoid upfront and ongoing costs of purchasing and maintaining assets like servers, storage, databases, networking, software, analytics, and intelligence. Cloud providers set up and maintain the necessary hardware and software on data centers over the internet. By doing so, cloud providers can easily scale a client’s computing power or software up or down when needed. One significant example was during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic when large gatherings were banned. The NFL tapped its cloud computing partner to rapidly scale up its resources so the league could safely and efficiently conduct virtual drafts; more than 100 live feeds would be running simultaneously for the following three days.

However, all cloud providers are not equal. Business owners should “trust but verify” a potential or existing cloud provider. Why? Because just as Willie Sutton famously said, “That’s where all the money is,” when asked why he robbed the banks during the Depression, cloud services today are where all the data is. Even a well-meaning cloud provider may unintentionally serve as a “honeypot” for cybercriminals who can crack a single digital “safe” and access reams of potentially valuable passwords, personally identifiable information and other data.

In addition to the scalability and potentially reduced upfront capital costs, there are plenty of reasons to go with a cloud provider. A cloud computing environment can offer improved reliability with efficient data backup, disaster recovery, and business continuity services; data will be mirrored (or copied) in multiple sites on the cloud provider’s network. And reputable cloud providers can offer robust policies, technology, and controls that help protect data, apps, and infrastructure from potential threats.

However, it is crucial to verify a cloud provider’s claims, ensuring the particular provider can successfully meet the security and other needs of the business. And this can mean doing some digging. First, a business owner should scour the contact and confirm what exactly the provider is promising. Does it say they will move your information into the cloud and secure it? Or does it just say they will move it? Simply guaranteeing data transfer is like contracting a moving company to transport your household goods, only to find it all dumped on the lawn of your new house because the agreement did not state they would place it inside the house.

Another essential step involves understanding who is verifying the provider’s claims. To begin with, a company that performs services should not be the one checking them. Instead, the best practice is to ensure that a qualified independent third party reviews the provider’s cyber-practices. Also, it is good to consider whether the provider’s cloud architecture, standards, and services suit your business’ workload and management preferences. Find out whether a significant amount of re-coding or customization will be necessary to align your business’ legacy workloads with the cloud provider’s platforms.

Cloud providers often point to the way they can safeguard your sensitive data — and that is a valid point, as long as their cyber-defenses are as robust as they claim. Short of having an ethical hacker check them out, a would-be client can inquire about the provider’s network of secure data centers. A provider that maintains multiple regularly upgraded datacenters will likely offer more benefits — including the latest generation of fast and efficient computing hardware, reduced network latency for applications, and larger economies of scale — than one that operates only a single corporate datacenter.

Cloud computing can offer potent benefits to businesses of all sizes — but the migration can be intimidating. Working with a trusted IT services consultant, taking the additional steps, and gaining a thorough understanding of the issues involved can make the process smoother and ensure that your data is efficiently migrated and safely maintained.

Carl Mazzanti is the president of eMazzanti Technologies in Hoboken.