3 Tips for Maximizing Cloud Security in the Office

Cloud-based software is everywhere. However, so are cloud-based security issues. Unfortunately for most businesses, security breaches occur on a regular basis, and a surprising number of breaches go unnoticed. Many are caused by employee carelessness or as the result of a lack of knowledge. Here are three things you can do today to improve cloud security in the office.

Education

As mentioned above, most security breaches occur because employees are unfamiliar with cloud-based security software. It is important to educate your staff about the information your company stores in the cloud, as well make sure that every employee understands the proper security protocols for the service you are using.

Educating your staff will allow for a greater understanding and appreciation for the importance of minimizing security breaches involving the cloud.

Beef Up Your Passwords

Gone are the days of simple passwords like birthdays or anniversaries. Complex passwords are a necessity for securing your information. This is true for personal information as well as company based information. A good rule of thumb for passwords is to use a complex series of upper and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols.

For example, choose a random phrase such as “cloud-based.” The phrase “cloud-based” on its own is not a secure password. However, by incorporating uppercase letters, numbers and a symbol or two, you instantly increase the security level of that password. An example could be C10ud-B@$3d. Hackers use systems that can run through thousands of letter/number combinations in just a few minutes. So when you create a more complex password, it makes it much more difficult for them to break into the system.

Using a more complicated system of creating passwords will help to ensure that malicious security breaches are less likely to occur.

Restrict Access

Another way to create a more secure cloud-based system is to restrict access to essential personnel only. The idea is simple: fewer access points results in fewer breach opportunities. Restricting access to essential personnel with security clearance heightens cloud security because the sensitive information is only available to a handful of employees. And if a breach does occur, the number of people who could be responsible is lower, making it easier to find the leak and patch it. Make sure to restrict access to trustworthy employees with a healthy track record of honesty and integrity.

Maximizing cloud security doesn’t have to be something that you lose sleep over. Implement these three strategies today to improve the security in your office.

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