DEPLOYING SECURE HYBRID CLOUD - Lrsitsolutions

DEPLOYING SECUREHYBRID CLOUD:SECURITY ASPECTS& CHALLENGES

ON-PREMISESEveryone seems to have gotten the memo about the cloud. To achieveperformance, reliability and cost-savings goals, enterprises areincreasingly embracing the cloud for both software reliability andscalability. The move to the cloud alleviates the need to physicallyENDPOINT SECURITYAPPLICATION CONTROLSmaintain servers and the network infrastructure surrounding them;however, it’s important to note that with cloud environments,IDENTITY AND ACCESS MANAGEMENTorganizations won’t be alleviated when it comes to security, rather theywill need to continue to carry the responsibility of securing data andDATA PROTECTION AND ENCRYPTIONworkloads both in the cloud and on-premises.Even though a cloud service provider (CSP) may provide some level ofsecurity, hybrid cloud architecture can be complex and requirescontinuous management from enterprise security teams to ensure thatdata and workloads are kept safe and secure.NETWORK CONTROLSOPERATING SYSTEMVIRTUALIZATION LAYERWith increasing compliance requirements such as General DataProtection Regulation (GDPR), the growing number of advanced threatsNETWORK INFRASTRUCTUREand the need to move at the speed of business, security teams need toprovide a comprehensive security framework to protect cloud andPHYSICAL INFRASTRUCTUREon-premises environments.An essential step for a hybrid cloud security framework is to put securityfirst. By enabling secure-by-design and integrating security controls intoCUSTOMERRESPONSIBILITYDevOps processes and cloud migration initiatives from the beginning,security can accelerate your business by not having to use valuable timeand resources on reactive responses to threats and compliance issues.CLOUDENDPOINT SECURITYThe shift toward cloud and hybrid cloud environments has changed theAPPLICATION CONTROLSmix of responsibilities that administrators of on-premises and cloudsystems must address. Our findings have uncovered three main themes:IDENTITY AND ACCESS MANAGEMENT1. Increased Complexity and Scale of Hybrid Cloud Environments:DATA PROTECTION AND ENCRYPTIONMainstream cloud adoption is leading to increasing hybrid cloudcomplexity and sprawl.2. Lack of Automation and Third-Party Tool Integration: Manualprocesses and disparate tools leave security teams shorthanded in therace to innovation.NETWORK CONTROLSOPERATING SYSTEMVIRTUALIZATION LAYER3. Limited Budgets and Staffing Shortages: Overstrained securityteams are left to contend with limited staffing, reduced budgets andNETWORK INFRASTRUCTUREuncertain relationships with DevOps.PHYSICAL INFRASTRUCTURECLOUD SERVICE PROVIDERNATIVE CONTROL

WHAT ARE SOME HYBRID CLOUD SECURITY CHALLENGES?Protecting your dataCompliance and governanceSecurity in the supply chainLimit data exposure for yourorganization through encryption.The same data will be either intransit or at rest at differentmoments in time. You need a varietyof security to limit data exposureduring either of these states.If you work in a highly regulated sectorlike healthcare, finances, or government,hybrid cloud infrastructure may presentadditional considerations. Know how tocheck your distributed environments tomake sure that they are compliant; howto implement custom or regulatorysecurity baselines; and how to preparefor security audits.Hybrid cloud environments often includeproducts and software from multiplevendors in a complicated ecosystem.Know how your vendors test andmanage their software and products.Understand when and how your vendorshave inspected source code, how andwhich implementation guidelines theyfollow, and how and when vendors canprovide updates and patches.Physical controls forhybrid cloud securityThe components ofhybrid cloud securityHybrid clouds can span multiple locations, whichmakes physical security a special challenge. Youcan’t build a perimeter around all your machinesand lock the door.Hybrid cloud security, like computer security ingeneral, consists of three components: physical,technical, and administrative.In the case of shared resources like a public cloud,you may have Service Level Agreements (SLAs)with your cloud provider that define which physicalsecurity standards will be met. For example, somepublic cloud providers have arrangements withgovernment clients to restrict which personnelhave access to the physical hardware.But even with good SLAs, you’re giving up somelevel of control when you’re relying on a publiccloud provider. This means other security controlsbecome even more important.Physical controls are for securing your actualhardware. Examples include locks, guards, andsecurity cameras.Technical controls are protections designed into ITsystems themselves, such as encryption, networkauthentication, and management software. Manyof the strongest security tools for hybrid cloud aretechnical controls.Finally, administrative controls are programs tohelp people act in ways that enhance security,such as training and disaster planning.

Technical controls forhybrid cloud securityTechnical controls are the heart of hybridcloud security. The centralizedmanagement of a hybrid cloud makestechnical controls easier to implement.Some of the most powerful technicalcontrols in your hybrid cloud toolbox areencryption, automation, orchestration,access control, and endpoint security.ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROLS FOR HYBRID CLOUD SECURITYLastly, administrative controls in hybrid cloud security are implemented to account for human factors. Because hybridcloud environments are highly connected, security is every user’s responsibility.Disaster preparedness and recovery are an example of an administrative control. If part of your hybrid cloud is knockedoffline, who’s responsible for what actions? Do you have protocols in place for data recovery?Hybrid architecture offers significant advantages for administrative security. With your resources potentially distributedamong on-site and off-site hardware, you have options for backups and redundancies. In hybrid clouds that involvepublic and private clouds, you can fail over to the public cloud if a system on your private data center cloud fails.

The LRS Security approach tosecuring your hybrid cloudWhile offering certain protections from zero-day exploits and insider attacks, thecloud alone does not provide the enterprise security controls you’d expect andneed for a business leveraging the cloud. In one study, 42 percent oforganizations reported an attack in their hybrid cloud environments, and morethan half of the organizations surveyed had easily remediable networkvulnerabilities from using outdated browsers and legacy or unpatchedoperating systems.Much like on-premises IT environments, a hybrid cloud environment has similarsecurity concerns and requirements such as protecting data, securing systemsand ensuring regulatory compliance. However, a hybrid cloud environmentcarries an additional challenge, which is to apply the same speed and attentionto securing data on both cloud as well as on-premises environments.The LRS security approach to securing hybrid cloud environments addressesthe critical needs of enterprise-wide security with a focus to protect data,enhance productivity, and ensure compliance.Protect DataData is one of the most valuable and critical assets entrusted to or created bya company. In a hybrid cloud environment, data lives both on-premises andin the cloud as well as moves between where it’s stored and the endpointsand devices where it’s accessed. For a hybrid cloud environment, you needto bring your own security controls to complement the security of yourcloud service provider to keep your data safe and secure.Enhance ProductivityFor any business, productive time and resources are essential tomaintaining success. Therefore, time and resources used in attending topreventable security incidents may not be the most efficient path forcontinued business growth. However, by working closely with DevOps toprovide a security framework and the necessary tools to incorporatesecurity controls from the beginning, productivity is not lost in having togo back and incorporate it later.Ensure ComplianceAchieving and maintaining compliance can be complex, especially in ahybrid cloud environment where there are unique compliancechallenges across heterogeneous environments. Therefore, in order tomeet and maintain compliance in a hybrid cloud environment, it isessential to have visibility and reporting into both the cloud andon-premises systems.

SeHybrid Cloud Security:Areas of focus and capabilitiesFor a more detailed look at what’s needed to makesure you’re safe and secure on both your cloud andon-premises environments, the wheel graphicorganizes the 10 areas of focus and capabilities forestablishing a comprehensive security framework.it ycu rop eand threat mrationsa natinuous complianceConVisibility andintelligenceg ementIdentityand ApplicationsecuritySecure DevOpsIt all starts with a focus on Secure DevOps. Line-of-business leaders apply pressure on DevOps teams to delivervalue to cloud initiatives at speed and scale. These teams need to be supported by being given security policiesand architectures to develop applications and workloads on the cloud with security in mind from thebeginning, not as an afterthought. According to 2020 security predictions for hybrid cloud, vulnerabilities incontainer components are one of the top security concerns for DevOps teams.AutomationBy integrating automated provisioning of security policies, security technologies and vulnerability scanning inyour hybrid cloud environments and workloads, you are able to save valuable time and resources otherwisespent on reactive responses to threats.Security operations and threat managementTo be effective with security operations and threat management, it is essential to have central policymanagement and visibility across both your on-premises and cloud workloads, enabled through a singleunified security framework. Your security operations center (SOC) and team will need to continue to detectknown and unknown threats, go beyond individual alerts to identify and prioritize potential incidents, andapply AI to accelerate investigation processes.Continuous complianceAchieving and maintaining continuous compliance across regulatory and industry mandates is a tough task formost organizations — and especially so for DevOps teams. Your business can get ahead of compliance withAI-based software to stay on top of regulatory trends, dynamic monitoring tools to track compliance risk acrossyour organizations, automation to streamline auditing and reporting, and services to deliver invaluableexpertise and insight.