Cloud Computing and Service Models Essay

Cloud Computing and Service Models Essay

Cloud Computing and Service Models Essay

Cloud Computing

Technology use has intensified recently, and projections show that the trend will continue for a long time. Indeed, it is right to deduce that technology use will continue increasing as the populace depends more on technology. Each day, people send emails, stream videos, play games, and store information online. Cloud computing makes things happen behind the scenes, and individuals and organizations will increasingly rely on this technology as communication, business, and socialization continue becoming more technology-based. This paper explores cloud computing, primarily focusing on service models and the most important benefit and risk.

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Cloud Computing and Service Models

Before examining cloud computing service models, it is crucial to explain what cloud computing entails. Cloud computing involves delivering computer services over the internet (the cloud). Typical services include data storage, networking, applications, and servers (National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), n.d.). The primary aim of cloud computing is to provide faster innovation, efficiency, and economies of scale. As a result, individuals and organizations adopting cloud computing in computing services are likely to achieve more output, minimize operating costs, and enhance infrastructure security.

Cloud computing service models include Software as a Service (SaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). Each model is designed to satisfy specific business requirements. Saas provides applications that an organization accesses via the web, and the software provider is responsible for the applications’ management (NIST, n.d.). Such an arrangement eases an organization the burden of software maintenance and network security, among other costly and time-consuming services. Through Paas, organizations can build and manage applications without the information technology infrastructure (NIST,n.d.). Iaas offers applications over the web on a subscription basis. It is characterized by the acquisition of services access to applications as a need arises without the need for downloads or installations. Customers are exempted from the role of managing infrastructure under Iaas.

Most Important Benefit- Security

Security is a genuine concern for many organizations relying on technology to execute most routine functions. The worry increases when they adopt cloud computing solutions since cybercriminals can access files and programs the same way users access them. However, several cloud computing features enhance data protection, reducing users’ worries. For instance, cloud hosts primarily concentrate on monitoring securityin cloud systems (Mishra et al., 2018). Unlike a conventional system where information technology personnel serve other organizational roles, cloud hosts engage in security monitoring as a full–time job. The undivided attention reduces the chances of cyber-related threats.

The other cloud computing feature vital in security enhancement is reducing access to unauthorized users. Often, data theft, user errors, and malicious damage are employee-related. As a result, it is safer to keep sensitive information away from employees, and cloud computing provides this crucial offsite option. Data security is further strengthened in cloud storage since it is encrypted before storage and transmission over networks (Gupta & Agrawal, 2019). Security settings can also be customized according to the users’ profiles, besides reducing unauthorized access.

Cloud computing is also proactive in threat management. This objective is achieved by security deployment in various data storage and transmission endpoint. Cloud architects actively respond to threats such as denial of service attacks through active monitoring and other proactive means such as traffic disbursement (Mishra et al., 2018). Besides, cloud security ensures that data is safe throughout its lifecycle. In this case, critical data is protected from creation to destruction. Importantly, critical systems can still run securely despite some of their components’ failures. This implies that single component failure cannot stop systems from running in cloud computing.

Most Important Risk- Data Loss

Despite its numerous benefits, cloud computing is associated with many risks. The most important risk that individuals and organizations must prioritize is data loss. Data loss is the most common cloud computing risk where data is completely lost, corrupted, or unreadable (Information Resources Management Association, 2018). Also called data leakage, data loss implies that the data owner cannot use one or more data elements as planned. Data loss is among the risk with far-reaching effects in an organization.

Due to the implications of data loss, it is crucial to examine the various ways in which data loss can occur. Common in Saas applications, data loss can occur through accidental deletion and users’ mistakes (Whitman & Mattord, 2021). A fitting illustration is a case where someone deletes a scrapped file only to realize later that it is still useful. Data loss can also occur when data is overwritten. Data overwriting happens as updates, addition, and importation occur in large data volumes. Data can also be lost via malicious actions. For instance, an employee can corrupt a crucial file or delete it before quitting. Hackers also maliciously delete or corrupt when they surpass weak security systems.

As a cloud computing risk area requiring maximum attention, data loss has huge and adverse outcomes in organizations. Individuals using cloud computing in everyday computing services are severely affected too. One of the adversely impacting outcomes is reputational damage. Businesses, social organizations, and corporates damage their reputation when they lose crucial data. It usually happens when people’s private data is accessed by malicious users or wholly lost without a backup. Data loss/breach issues can also lead to legal accusations. It is always costly and troubling to deal with legal matters. Above all, data loss hampers service delivery. For instance, data loss and related threats impede hospital operations, risking patients’ safety (Argaw et al., 2020). Such outcomes illustrate the criticality of data loss and why it should be a priority area.

Cloud data protection is crucial to prevent individuals and organizations from cyber-attacks and accidental loss of valuable information in Saas and Iaas applications. Security interventions depend on the type of data, technology competency, and risks. A common way of securing cloud data is data encryption on stored and connected data (Gupta & Agrawal, 2019). Besides, organizations should set correct user permissions, such as ensuring that a person cannot access sensitive data once they get terminated. Backups are crucial too. Some data can be stored in physical drives, particularly the most sensitive data. Other practical interventions include two-factor authentication and a strong password policy to minimize the chances of data deletion, malicious damage, and user mistakes.

Conclusion

Cloud computing is a common phenomenon in today’s organizations as reliance on technology and the internet increases. It allows data storage, management, and sharing via the internet. As explained in this discussion, cloud computing service models include Saas, Paas, and Iaas. The most important benefit is enhanced security through cloud security solutions. Data loss is the most significant risk. Due to the far-reaching impacts of data loss, individuals and organizations should adopt robust security measures such as data encryption and user permissions.

References

Argaw, S. T., Troncoso-Pastoriza, J. R., Lacey, D., Florin, M. V., Calcavecchia, F., Anderson, D., …& Flahault, A. (2020). Cybersecurity of hospitals: Discussing the challenges and working towards mitigating the risks. BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making, 20(1), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12911-020-01161-7

Gupta, B. B., &Agrawal, D. P. (Eds.).(2019). Handbook of research on cloud computing and big data applications in IoT.IGI Global.

Information Resources Management Association. (2018). Cyber security and threats: Concepts, methodologies, tools, and applications. Information Science Reference.

Mishra, B. S. P., Das, H., Dehuri, S., & Jagadev, A. K. (2018). Cloud computing for optimization: Foundations, applications, and challenges.Springer.

National Institute of Standards and Technology.(n.d.).DRAFT – Evaluation of cloud computing services based on NIST 800-145. https://www.nist.gov/system/files/documents/2017/05/31/evaluation_of_cloud_computing_services_based_on_nist

Whitman, M. E., &Mattord, H. J. (2021). Principles of information security.Cengage Learning.

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Part 2 (50%)
– Complete Review Question 3.10 on page 96 in the Connolly text. Include a description of the 3 service models defined by NIST.
– Which cloud computing benefit do you feel is the most important and why?
– Which cloud computing risk do you feel is the most important and why?

Include the questions with your answers
The submission should be well organized, demonstrate your understanding of the assigned material and be in the order of ~1,000+ words in length.
Your submission must be original, include supporting sentences using the terms, concepts, and theories with the page number or website from the required readings or other material. Your submission should paraphrase the material you reference, restrict your use of direct quotes (copy and paste) to less than 20% of the submission (the grade will be impacted if you exceed this limit).

 

REVIEW QUESTION 3.10:

WHAT IS CLOUD COMPUTING?