We could say that cloud technology is a global network of servers from which different technological services for computing, storage and data processing, among others, are offered. Its main benefits are simplicity, high availability, elasticity, a wide range of services, as well as resource and cost efficiency.
The difference between public, private and hybrid cloud deployment models
- Public Cloud: The service is provided by an enterprise (Hyperscale), and is usually multi-client infrastructure. If properly adapted, it can be cheaper compared to private cloud, and for smaller companies offers the door to a more cost-effective IT environment. Recommended for use with cloud-native services (PaaS) and where high confidentiality is not required.
- Private Cloud: The infrastructure belongs to the organisation itself and therefore guarantees greater data confidentiality. However, it requires more investment. Recommended for services that require more confidentiality, or traditional computing services (IaaS) that demand to be on 24×7.
- Hybrid Cloud: This is a combination of the two previous ones. Usually a large corporation makes use of this model as it is the most balanced in terms of confidentiality, availability of systems and costs.
My security considerations to take into account when migrating to the cloud and mitigating risk
Care must be taken to avoid accidental exposure of resources to the internet by avoiding the use of public IPs except when strictly necessary. For services that must be exposed to the Internet, security measures such as a WAF for web access, or ACLs for virtual machines, should be put in place. Enable encryption where possible and also have multi-factor authentication (MFA) enabled.
