Security Considerations For Cloud Migration 

Migration to the cloud can be a real game-changer for businesses looking to scale and innovate at a rapid pace. The cloud offers many advantages, including cost savings, flexibility, and increased efficiency, however, cloud migration, when done badly, can also introduce potential security risks.  

Before exploring the security measures that should be considered for cloud migration, it’s important to understand the potential threats to your operational security. These can include data breaches, insider threats, privacy issues, compliance issues, and configuration errors associated with handing over control of the physical infrastructure. 

Security is a shared responsibility. To help mitigate the security risks associated with migration to the cloud, businesses need to take appropriate measures before, during, and after migration.

At least 95% of cloud security failures will be the customer's fault

- Gartner

Before migration:

• Develop a plan for the encryption of data when both in transit and at rest. Encryption is vital for the protection of company information and stored data. 
• Build a plan for access controls to sensitive data stored in the cloud using complex passwords, multi-factor authentication, and limiting access only to those who require it.
• Create a robust backup and recovery plan in the event of disaster or data breach.
• Ensure you have a strong IAM (Identity Access Management) strategy that includes monitoring and auditing, managing roles, and revoking access in a timely manner when required. 

During Migration:

• Is your cloud infrastructure compliant with industry regulations and standards? 
• To ensure your security processes are working as intended, rigorous testing and validation is vital to proving the security of your infrastructure one way or another prior to the migration of sensitive data. 
• Run regular audits to ensure security processes are working as intended.

After migration:

• Keep up with ongoing maintenance to ensure the continuation of best practices to secure your cloud infrastructure. 
• Develop incident response plans to enable rapid and decisive action in the event of a security incident to ensure organisational continuity.
• If using third-party cloud services it’s important to validate that security processes within third parties comply with your organisational requirements and policies. Building channels for rapid communication with service providers can help to resolve issues and security incidents rapidly. 

Migration to the cloud provides huge potential for benefits to organisations to scale, access innovation and save money, but the potential security implications need to be considered before taking the leap. By implementing appropriate security measures before, during, and after migration, your organisation can protect itself and secure its cloud infrastructure, protecting sensitive data from potential threats whilst reaping the benefits of the cloud.

Want to learn more about the benefits of cloud migration? 

You can find out more about the security considerations for successful cloud migration at the AWS Cloud Migration: Strategies For Success day. Cloudsoft is hosting a fireside chat between our Vice President of Engineering Aled Sage and one of our customers who has successfully migrated to the cloud, Colin Tinto, Group CTO and CitNow Group. 

Come along to ask us questions about security and the cloud, find out more about the agenda for the day and how to sign up:

AWS Cloud Security Review 

Cloudsoft's certified consultants can work with you to conduct a comprehensive security review to detect any vulnerabilities in your AWS environment. If you want to get a handle on your organisations cloud security, find out more about our AWS Cloud Security Review service.