Migrating to the cloud may be like reaching the ultimate safety net. However, the common assumption is that once files are uploaded to cloud storage sites like Google Drive, Dropbox, or AWS, they are safe from destruction. This assumption may be very misleading. In reality, cloud storage sites provide high availability but do not guarantee immunity from data destruction.
Hardware failure may be rare at cloud data centers. However, data destruction may result from human error, insider attacks, ransomware attacks, or loss of access to your account. Leaning on the security provided by a single cloud storage site by default may be a gamble with your company’s assets. To be certain about your business’s future, you need to take full ownership of your data hygiene. Below are three critical strategies to strengthen your file systems against total destruction!
1. Establish Strict Access Controls and Audit Logs
Your first defense against cloud data destruction is to control who touches your files. Most companies tend to open up their permission levels to enable easier collaboration. However, this may be a huge gamble with your company’s assets. What happens when an employee with high administrative privileges has their account hacked by a malicious user? Your company may be destroyed within seconds.
You need to adopt the principle of least privilege. This means employees need to have access to the files and folders they need to perform their immediate tasks. You need to review these privileges regularly. When an employee changes roles or leaves the company, adjust their privileges instantly.
Additionally, it is vital to ensure that comprehensive audit log functionality is enabled. Access controls are great in preventing unauthorized access to your file system. Audit logs are like having a security camera monitoring your file system. They track all file creations, modifications, and deletions. If your files go missing, the audit log will provide a detailed record of when it happened and which credentials were used. This is vital in establishing whether the file loss was accidental or malicious.
2. Configure Advanced Versioning and Soft-Delete Features
As much as having access controls in place is vital to your file system’s security, accidents are still possible. A user could accidentally overwrite a critical spreadsheet file with a blank file. In another instance, your file system could be attacked by ransomware that encrypts your files. In all these situations, your file technically exists on the file system. It is just that it has lost all its usability. This is where versioning saves the day.
Most cloud file systems offer versioning capabilities. However, they are not enabled by default. It is vital to configure your cloud file system to maintain file versions over time. If your file becomes corrupted or is overwritten by a malicious user, versioning capabilities let you revert to an earlier version to restore it. It could be the file’s state an hour ago, a day ago, or a week ago. It is vital to ensure that your cloud file system offers “soft-delete” features. When a user deletes a file, it does not mean it is lost forever. It ends up in a holding area or a digital trash bin, where it remains for a set period before being deleted. This buffer time is crucial in recovering deleted files before they are gone forever.
3. Implement a Robust Multi-Cloud or Hybrid Backup Strategy
If your main cloud storage provider is hit by a massive outage, or if your account is suspended due to a billing dispute or a breach of the terms of service, you will be unable to access any of your files.
To get out of this situation, diversification of storage locations is required. A robust solution includes a system of backups independent of your main file system. For instance, if your company is currently using Google Drive as the main cloud storage solution, what is required is an automated system that creates Google Drive backups to another cloud storage system, such as Azure or AWS, or even an on-premises server.
This way, the data is freed from the control of any one company. What is achieved is a situation where, no matter what happens to your main storage provider, your company will own the data most critical to the running of the business.
Building a Disaster Recovery Plan
It is not about finding a magic tool that will save the day; it is about integrating all the above protective mechanisms into a robust disaster recovery plan. This way, your cloud storage is no longer just a locker; it is a fortress that will protect all your files from impending danger!
