Finding affordable data storage isn’t the challenge it used to be. In fact, some sources say the costs are dropping by 20-to-30 percent annually. This means that businesses that thought cost was a roadblock to using the cloud for their data storage needs, can rest assured that they can confidently go on and secure the amount of secure cloud storage they need.
Unfortunately, there is one big problem with cloud storage for a business.
The Pros of Cloud Storage
Before we get into the one thing that businesses have to confront about using cloud storage, let’s take a look at some of the benefits.
One of the major benefits of using cloud storage is the accessibility factor. Cloud-hosted files can be accessed from about anywhere with Internet access. This benefit provides organizations the ability to use a distributed workforce if they so choose. Leaning on remote workers severely cuts a business’ real estate, electric, and HVAC costs, giving business owners more flexibility on how they go about doing business.
Another useful benefit is the ability to scale their software to meet the needs of their business. In the traditional method of file storage, businesses would host large servers that would carry the applications and storage capabilities of the organization. This would not only create costly issues that would require that a new software license be purchased for every application, but it typically resulted in an organization wasting valuable computing resources by only using a fraction of the space and computing power of the server. With cloud computing, your organization can get all the storage it needs without huge capital outlays.
Finally, what could be the largest benefit of using cloud computing for your business’ storage needs, is that the underlying technology is not only extremely fast, it is monitored and maintained by the service provider. This way, businesses that depend on cloud storage get reliable, up-to-date systems that are completely backed up and able to be upgraded as needed. If the decision to use cloud computing comes down to the technology used, it becomes an easy decision to make.
What About Security?
One variable that isn’t necessarily a pro, but not a con either is how data is protected in the cloud and in transit back and forth between it. There are actually two different considerations. The first: the security of the underlying data in a cloud environment, is one that can be answered quickly; the other: how data is protected in transit, is a longer discussion. This is because the data that is stored is done so on reliable servers with experienced technicians overlooking the infrastructure. For the most part, your data is safe in storage.
The other issue, securing data that’s in transit, is actually on your organization to figure out. Here is a list of four things you can do to ensure that your cloud-based data stays secure:
- Ensure logins are protected – Probably the most important consideration for protecting cloud data is to ensure that it is protected by strong passwords and multi-factor authentication.
- Don’t store mission-critical data – Some data should absolutely remain in-house, whether it is for compliance purposes or simply because the data is too sensitive to send out over the Internet.
- Use encryption – There are services that allow you to encrypt your files before you send them to cloud storage, and this is something to look into if you are concerned with your data storage security.
- Constantly monitor connected apps – Keep all connected applications monitored and updated to help avoid data security troubles.
The Problem with Cloud Storage
Now we arrive at the one real problem your organization is going to have with cloud storage: You need an active Internet connection to access the data stored on the cloud. This creates a separate set of issues. The first is that your customers don’t know where you store their data and it can be a harsh revelation for them should something negative happen. Another problem is that if you have a distributed workforce, the Internet connections they access data from can often be questionable—whether that is because of security or bandwidth issues—and can cause headaches for your IT administrators.
Overall, however, the pros of cost control, accessibility, and the reliability of the systems that your data is stored on can significantly outweigh the cons. If you would like to get a professional perspective on how you can utilize cloud computing to streamline your business, give the experts at North Central Technologies a call today at 978-798-6805.
