Cloud-based services characterize the modern day data portability. Thousands of users and organizations are quickly embracing these services. However, there are serious security concerns which make it extremely difficult to fully adopt this kind of technological advancement despite the numerous benefits it presents to users. Some of the major security threats arising from the use of cloud-based services such as Box and Google docs include the following.
Data Loss
Big organizations with vast resources which may seem adequate to protect itself from suffering a data loss have found themselves at the mercy of cloud computing. This has been caused by either a data wipe, natural disaster or malicious attack. Amazon and Google have suffered a massive data loss in the past. Both the organizations could not protect themselves due to lack of full control of the service. Both the provider and the users have a role to play in security data. While most of the providers of cloud-based services have to a great extent prevented data loss on their side, some of the vital control are left to users who find it difficult to protect their data. It is a tiresome and costly process to review service provider’s backup procedures including the physical storage to be sure that even in the event of an occurrence of a natural disaster, it is possible to restore stored data.
Abuse of Cloud-based Services
Cloud computing allows all kind of users to store unlimited data on this platform. Many users have abused the storage capacity of these services. The vast amount of data hosted on these servers has made it possible for attackers to inject a malware or run malicious software which ultimately infiltrate the stored information. According to Rappert, this has heightened data security risks among users which the service providers find difficult to protect users from such criminal elements whose motive is to steal vital user information and use it for their own selfish gains (31).
Works Cited
Rappert, Brian. Technology and Security: Governing Threats in the New Millennium. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007. Print.
