Wrapping Your Arms Around Cloud App Security

There's nothing worse than a leaky cloud. If you are talking literally about the sky you get soaked. If you are being metaphorical and referring to computing, your leaking cloud means lost data and break-ins. Neither are good, but I'd much rather have to towel off.

Like raincoats and umbrellas, there are ways to protect your cloud apps.

Peter Silva, a manager with F5, wrote a piece for Virtualization Review explaining how to secure cloud software when you don't have control over the physical network, such as the ability to deploy what is now a sumptuous array of security appliances.

Since the cloud is virtual, you yourself have to go virtual such as using virtual Web firewalls rather than the ones you actually put in a rack, hook to the network, and tie to Consolidated Edison.

What's cool about these Web-based firewalls is you can set 'em so easily. With a physical firewall you set it up assuming a need and hoping it fully works.

With virtual, if you spot a cloud application vulnerability -- say there is a security alert -- you can quickly deploy the firewall. This way, your cloud app can be proactively and reactively protected.

Find out more about what Silva calls WAFs here.

Posted by Doug Barney on 04/17/2012 at 12:47 PM