Services-in-the-cloud have changed the way we do business. If you can tap into Security as a service (SECaaS or SaaS) it may help you handle increased security demands and costs.
It’s truly amazing when you stop to think about how quickly mobile devices exploded into our personal and our business lives. C-Suite officers on travel stay abreast of company issues on their notebooks or mini-tablets. Employees work at home to finish projects remotely and bring their personal devices, like smart phones, into the work place. All of this mobility produces a boom in productivity but also raises major issues surrounding data security on all those mobile devices.
Here are six things to think about as you consider whether to outsource your data security to the cloud.
- SECaaS saves money.
Software as a service (SaaS), platform as a service (PaaS), and infrastructure as a service (IaaS) are well established, popular cloud services. Security as a service (SECaaS) offers a promise of low-cost, high-performing cloud service. Now you can take advantage of security management in the cloud for a competitive service fee. Instead of fronting the updates to software and constantly keeping abreast of evolving security threats, with SECaaS it is all done for you. The icing on the cake is that top-notch security professionals configure the firewall you need around your network. - Hardware replacement through managed service contract.
One of the most expensive items in network security is replacing the hardware required to run it. Not only will your SECaaS provider replace the hardware that makes up your firewall as it ages, it also will upgrade hardware as needed by technological changes or by your future business needs. - Think about revamping your IT department.
With SECaaS, your IT people can concentrate on your business needs instead of the ever-evolving security challenges to your network. Make no mistake about it, SECaaS means big changes for your IT department. As IT becomes more business focused, IT techs will become the custodians of all the new technologies and systems. They will have their fingers on the pulse of all those service level agreements to make sure companies are living up to the terms of their agreements. The IT department will make sure all the moving parts and pieces of your business’ technology and SECaaS play well together.They also will see that the SECaaS and other cloud services are in tune with your future business goals. After all, the cloud-provided services need to coordinate with your many business processes so that they mesh into one logical, over-arching business process system. In addition, master data management and the applications integration both on-site and off will grow, not diminish. Depending on the size of your company and your future business need for on-premises IT expertise, your current IT department is a logical choice to manage them. - Reporting:
You can look to SECaaS for automated weekly reports to your CIS or CIO, with analysis by the SECaaS’ certified engineers who have experience in running these types of reports. - Think about what comes off your plate with SECaaS.
The security management system will monitor the hosted, secure infrastructure and provides regular system backups. If the site goes down, your managed service provides a proactive response. SECaaS engineers will analyze, and update your on-site system, the software, and keep on top of all security updates. You can rely on them as your watchful eyes. - PCI and HIPAA compliance in the cloud.
SECaaS can help you prove compliance for Payment Card Industry (PCI) and Health Information Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) rules. SECaaS vendors have the ability to analyze your data and your security protocols to make sure you comply with HIPAA and PCI, which, by the way, affect different types of information. Both require sophistication to secure sensitive personal financial and health information. This is another important task SECaaS can do for you.
Michael Durante spent his teenage years into his early 20s climbing the ladder in a branch of a successful banking firm, starting as a teller and ending as a Sr. Branch Manager within 6 years. In 2003, he left the banking world to join his father and create TIE National, a telecom company 60 years in the making. Together, they grew the company from a two-man operation solely working on telephones to a multi-million dollar international business with employees in over a dozen states, covering everything from phone systems to cloud products and computer systems. You can find Michael on LinkedIn.