Despite more local companies moving to the cloud, they must still ensure effective cybersecurity protocols are in place to safeguard their systems and data.
By Sanele Ntoza, Channel Manager F5 Networks Southern Africa Cyber Security and Next Generation Solutions at Westcon-Comstor Sub-Saharan Africa
Such a migration introduces a layer of complexity that encompasses more than user behaviour, connectivity, and bandwidth. It entails a considered approach that must address security and infrastructure services, especially when it comes to multi-cloud environments.
Even though cloud-native security is extensive, it relies mostly on pattern matching. This gives attackers almost unlimited scope to test against it. While cloud providers do provide the tools for companies to create more robust solutions, it is a time-consuming process requiring skills that many might not have in-house. Research as far back as 2017 has found that up to 60% of SMEs fail within six months after suffering a successful cyberattack. Given the increased connectedness of our digital landscape and the challenging economic environment thanks in part to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is likely that this number will be even higher in 2020.
There are three fundamental elements required in any cloud environment – security; availability; and performance. Without these in place, no company can hope to be successful. Considering the increasing number of devices connecting to the corporate network especially at a time when the lockdown is still prevalent, decision-makers need to pivot to protect not only their internal systems but also those in the cloud and even devices on the edge. Thinking differently about cybersecurity is a priority with more employees working from home on networks that are typically not as secure as those in the office.
It is easy to become bogged down in the minutiae of this. Instead of focusing on meeting strategic objectives and growing the business, companies are centred on the nuts and bolts of securing their cloud environments. However, this does not have to be the case.
Partner assistance
This is where working with trusted partners make this less of an arduous task. Leveraging disruptive technology combined with their experience in the cloud and cybersecurity environments, partners give companies the freedom to concentrate on meeting their business goals. The partner provides the technology leadership and guidance on ensuring systems work across cloud environments. Whether it is a hybrid or a public cloud migration, or even a multi-cloud infrastructure, the focus turns to linking the systems, data, and security in such a way that the user experience remains seamless.
Take, for instance, the recently introduced secure cloud architectures from multi-cloud application services provider F5. The F5 Secure Cloud Architectures enable companies to centralise and manage enterprise-grade security and infrastructure services irrespective of their environments. It provides a framework that is not focused on technology but rather on business outcomes and being adaptable to a continuously evolving environment.
Security policies are defined and managed by experts and stored as artefacts in source code repositories. This eliminates the potential of human error when it comes to manually update every application, system, and process migrated to the cloud. The F5 security policies give in-house application development teams the freedom and flexibility to choose the right environment to host their applications. For their part, security and network teams can define and enforce a catalogue of critical policies consistently across on-premise and cloud environments.
At a time when technological change is rapid and continuous, companies need the peace of mind that their environments and data are kept as secure as possible. Cyberattacks are more sophisticated than ever. And with the cloud providing the platform for future growth, it must be safeguarded on a fundamentally different basis than before.
To find out more about how the F5 Secure Cloud Architectures can safeguard your environment, https://m.westconcomstor.com/za/f5/Secure-Cloud-Architecture