What is cloud

Let's start with the name. Where did 'cloud' come from?

When the internet was in its infancy the word 'cloud' was used as a metaphor to describe how the complex telephone networks connected. Now, many people and organizations refer to it as 'THE cloud' but it's not a single entity, and it doesn't exist in just the one place. So, what exactly is it?

Cloud is a model of computing where servers, networks, storage, development tools, and even applications (apps) are enabled through the internet. Instead of organizations having to make major investments to buy equipment, train staff, and provide ongoing maintenance, some or all of these needs are handled by a cloud service provider.

There are five key characteristics of a cloud computing environment, as defined by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST):

Internet Access
With a public cloud environment, users "plug into" the data and applications via an internet connection giving anytime, anywhere access.

Measured Service
Cloud is often pay-as-you-go, where you only pay for what you use. Think about how a utility company meters how much water, electricity, or gas is used and charges based on consumption. The cloud is the same.

On-Demand Self-Service
Services can be requested and provisioned quickly, without the need for manual setup and configuration.

Shared Resource Pooling
Cloud often uses the multi-tenancy model. This means a single application is shared among several users. So, rather than creating a copy of the application for each user, several users, or "tenants" can configure the application to their specific needs.

Rapid Elasticity
Cloud platforms are elastic. An organization can scale its resource usage levels up or down quickly and easily as needs change.

With worldwide "whole cloud" spending predicted to reach $565B by 2021, it's never been more vital that businesses understand and fully embrace the possibilities this tech can unlock.

Before cloud computing, companies had to store all their data and software on their own hard drives and servers. The bigger the company, the more storage they needed. This way of treating data is not scalable at speed. For example, if word started spreading about your business and you suddenly had a lot of online orders, your servers would probably crash. Good business meant hard work for the IT department.

It's not just businesses that benefit from cloud computing. The cloud has transformed our lives as individuals as well. Many of us use cloud services every day. When we update our status on social media, binge a new streaming series, or check our bank accounts we're most likely using applications that are hosted by cloud services. These apps are accessed through an internet connection rather than installed on our hard drives or devices.

Today, cloud technology means that companies can scale and adapt at speed and scale, accelerate innovation, drive business agility, streamline operations, and reduce costs. Not only can this help propel companies through the current crisis, it can lead to increased, sustainable growth. According to our Future Systems research, companies that are more strategic in their approach to technology are doing better financially. They're achieving more than twice the average revenue growth of companies slow to implement and use their tech. In fact, 95 percent of leaders have adopted sophisticated cloud services.

Security plays an important role in cloud technology and providers take it extremely seriously. Their business depends on it. Plus, there are many regulatory bodies and compliance requirements from industries of all kinds driving the need for the cloud to be both as accessible as possible, while also being as secure as possible.

The fact is that the data stored in the cloud is probably safer than data on your hard drive. But this doesn't mean companies and people shouldn't be vigilant. Providers have robust methods of securing the cloud and they keep a laser focus on encryption and cloud security. Users of the cloud, however, need to be responsible for application security and securing the environment they create.

There are a few key things companies can do to minimize cloud security risks. Jonathan Roz, Managing Director, Accenture Cloud & Security, recommends taking these steps to become secure from the start:

• Define new security policies and procedures. The procedures you have already most likely don't address cloud infrastructure.
• Configure to the appropriate framework. Make sure the cloud environment is automated and configured in a way that's compliant with the security framework relevant to industry and country regulations.
• Identify the relevant controls needed to monitor policies and procedures to make sure they are compliant on an ongoing basis.
• Create a cloud-specific security reference architecture. This is critical because securing cloud environments is substantially different from securing on-premises environments—including tools, processes, and even skill requirements.
• Move to a DevSecOps model where infrastructure gets treated like application code and gets scanned before being deployed to check for misconfigurations or non-compliance.

A one-size-fits-all approach isn't the answer to cloud security. But with the many tools and practices now available, security shouldn't provide an obstacle to effective cloud migration and management.