Cloud infrastructure security involves protecting the infrastructure that cloud computing services are based on, including both physical and virtual infrastructure. Physical infrastructure includes the network infrastructure, servers, and other physical components of cloud data centers, while the Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) offerings — such as virtualized network infrastructure, computing, and storage — comprise the virtual infrastructure made available to cloud users.
The main goal of cloud infrastructure security is to protect this virtual infrastructure against a wide range of potential security threats, including both internal and external threats. By implementing policies, tools, and technologies for identifying and managing security issues, companies reduce the cost to the business, improve business continuity, and enhance regulatory compliance efforts.
Companies are increasingly moving to the cloud, entrusting these environments with sensitive data and business-critical applications. As a result, cloud security is a growing component of their cybersecurity programs, and cloud infrastructure security is a crucial part of this.
Cloud infrastructure security processes and solutions provide companies with much-needed protection against threats to their cloud infrastructure. These solutions can help to prevent data breaches (ensuring that sensitive data remains private by blocking unauthorized access), protect the reliability and availability of cloud services, and support regulatory compliance in the cloud.
The responsibility for cloud infrastructure security is dependent on the customer’s cloud strategy. For example, in public cloud, security is shared between the cloud provider and customer under the cloud shared responsibility model. Here the public cloud service provider is responsible for the security of the physical infrastructure in their data centers.
Responsibility for virtual infrastructure can be split between the public cloud customer and provider based on the cloud service model in use. For example, the cloud provider is responsible for securing the services that they provide to a cloud customer, such as the hypervisors used to host virtual machines in an IaaS environment. In a Software as a Service (SaaS) environment, the cloud provider is fully responsible for the security of the infrastructure stack.
However, in all cases, the public cloud customer is responsible for properly configuring the security settings provided by the cloud provider. They are also responsible for securing everything above the handover point in the cloud infrastructure stack. For example, a cloud customer should deploy virtual firewalls and similar network security solutions to secure traffic in an IaaS deployment.
Cloud environments come in various forms, and the details of cloud infrastructure security depend on the cloud model in use. The three main types of cloud infrastructure security include:
A mature cloud infrastructure security program can provide various benefits to the cloud customer, including:
Cloud infrastructure security is vital to the protection of corporate cloud environments and the resources that they contain. Some security best practices for the cloud include:
A strong cloud infrastructure security and cloud security program begins with the right security architecture. Learn more about designing a secure cloud environment with Check Point’s Cloud Security Blueprint.
Based on this blueprint, your organization can start identifying and selecting the tools that it needs to secure its cloud infrastructure. For more information on protecting cloud network infrastructure, check out this buyer’s guide.
Check Point CloudGuard Network Security enables companies to effectively protect the data plane in the cloud by securing network infrastructure against potential cyber threats. To learn more about the capabilities that Check Point CloudGuard offers to secure your organization’s cloud environment, sign up for a free demo today.
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