Security Is Still the Main Barrier to Cloud Adoption – Why?

WatServ

May 10, 2022

In 2021 we published an article here that listed the top eight reasons why executives are unsure about starting a cloud migration. We talked then about data security regarding such issues as data sovereignty and governance – addressing the widespread belief that information cannot be protected in the cloud.

However, security is now right at the top of the list. In research just published in February a full 63% of IT professionals said that it was concerns over cybersecurity that prevented their cloud adoption strategy proceeding further.

Of the 200 IT leaders surveyed in this research, only half said they are adequately staffed to manage the frequency of alerts they receive. IT teams spend 54% of their time investigating security alerts, with over half of those alerts turning out to be false or benign alarms. As threats within the cloud proliferate, IT leaders are looking for help to filter real threats from the noise.

This is a useful insight. We would suggest that false alarms are now becoming a major problem. Security systems that flag hundreds of alerts each day quickly become ignored and this allows the one real threat to slip through the net. There are also many changes in working models because of the pandemic that now require a new focus on how security is managed – in particular, for hybrid work supporting both office and home workers.

WatServ recently hosted an IT Executive Roundtable where we asked industry experts for their views on cloud security in 2022. Some of the key points in the discussion were:

Cyberattacks are getting more complex and complicated. Security must be approached as a continuous improvement initiative – it is never completed or just a check in a box.
Remote and hybrid work is now normal and has added an additional layer of complexity for companies that previously only had to protect their office environment.
Finding people with cybersecurity skills can be difficult – particularly if you are trying to hire them into in-house positions.
Investing in security can be a challenge when the budget eats into other initiatives – some managers may rather take a risk if it means their project gets the green light to proceed.

This connects back to the research mentioned earlier. Some of the other important points raised in that study include:

More than 65% of IT leaders said cloud adoption was the primary contributor to their increased workload in 2021
When asked what challenges were associated with adopting multiple cloud platforms, 69% said maintaining consistent cybersecurity coverage across all cloud infrastructures
Nearly 50% said securing the resources to manage different cloud infrastructures
Nearly 45% identified the difficulty in detecting threats progressing from one cloud infrastructure to another

Although all these concerns have elevated security to be the primary concern for executives considering a cloud migration, there is a large body of evidence that describes why the cloud is more secure than on-site systems.

For more information on safeguarding your IT infrastructure and digital assets, check out WatServ’s fully managed, cloud computing security operations center as-a-service (SoCaaS) solution, CloudSecure. You can focus on growing your business while we focus on ensuring your cloud environment remains secure.

About

WatServ is an IT solutions provider that helps organizations digitally transform through cloud technologies and managed services.

Serving clients as a trusted advisor since 2006, WatServ provides experience-tested, strategic solutions across all stages of the digital transformation journey. Clients choose WatServ to migrate infrastructure and applications to the cloud, secure critical data, implement disaster recovery, deploy virtual desktop, enable data-readiness for productivity solutions and manage IT environments.

Our clients span a broad range of industries, and we’re a global supplier of IT services for many Brookfield Portfolio Companies. To help our mid-size clients, we provide scalable offerings that simplify cloud adoption and drive business optimization. For enterprise clients, we co-create cloud solutions that enable stability and efficiency for complex IT tools and processes.

With more than 15 years of experience, WatServ has a track record of delivering quantifiable business results and a superior client experience. Ranked as one of Canada’s Top 100 Solution Providers for the last three years in a row, WatServ is always on.