CSGs (Cloud security gateways), also called Cloud Access Security Brokers (CASB) are either the on-premises or the cloud-hosted security programs. These act as a policy enforcement barrier in between the organization and the cloud applications used within it. Here we are present with the aim to brief our readers about What is cloud security gateway with the requirements to fulfill while choosing the best cloud service provider.
A Brief Introduction Cloud Web Security Gateway
CSGs render the visibility to the team of IT security and also provide all the capabilities that are required for cloud-centric security. The purpose is to mirror the enterprise's controls, which are deployed for protection of sensitive data. This barrier prevents the information in on-premises programs using techniques like data loss prevention, access control, data encryption, and more.
A cloud service offers a dramatic reduction in workload and increases flexibility over the traditional solutions. However, whether it is the risk of policy management, privacy standards, or concerns related to compliance, organizations face several challenges related to the data security while adopting them. This is the reason why enterprises demand cloud security gateways so that the data remains protected before it gets moved to the cloud. Applying the CSG cloud service gives freedom to administrators to utilize the cloud services with any exposure risk. This cloud data security technology leverages encryption, tokenization, and monitoring of activities with trending cloud service provides without affecting the availed functionalities.
Fundamental Requirements of Cloud Security Gateways
Whenever an organization adopts CSG cloud services, they should check for the following requirements. This will help them to choose the best cloud security providers among all available in the internet market.
1. Visibility
Where on the one hand, cloud adoption is rapidly increasing without any break, the enterprises are searching for simple practices through which they can simply block the unauthorized activity going on the cloud. Whenever the firm blocks a cloud service, its employees start responding in a frequent manner by searching for lesser-known with possibility of risky alternatives, which ends up with exacerbating problems.
While the department of information technology comprises of visibility in sanctioned or permitted cloud services but, their deficiency arises when the scope of shadow IT exists. An IT enterprise is unknown from the fact that who is using their cloud service with which device and for what purpose, either with a positive or negative aim. Therefore, such IT sectors opt for CSG cloud services for getting rid of these cloud data security issues.
Cloud security gateways render constant visibility to both sanctioned as well as unsanctioned (Shadow IT) usage of cloud. This visibility extends to:
- Data retention policies of each and every unsanctioned cloud applications
- What amount of data is getting uploaded or downloaded to cloud services
- Whether service providers encrypt the data either at the rest state or transit state
- Overall rating of security risk for all the cloud services currently being in use
Note: Risk score is used for the evaluation and selection of the cloud services, which meet the requirements of data security and compliance.
2. Compliance
It is a regular activity in an organization that employees are uploading confidential and regulated files on the cloud. Earlier, firms relied on the on-premises DLP solutions for data protection from leakage through emails and assure that their data is free from leakage risk with internal as well as external policies. However, with the usage of CSG cloud services, it is possible to provide the same security environment on cloud as well. These restrict one from uploading or sharing the confidential files without any prior notice to the organization.
Cloud security gateways equip a cross-cloud policy of DLP engine, instant report of any incidence, and remediation workflow, which ensures a consistent control set over the cloud services. Now it will be possible to prevent a wide range of sensitive and regulated data that includes PCI-DSS, HIPAA-HITECH, Personal Identifiable Information, and the Intellectual Property.
3. Protection From Threat
This is one of the essential capabilities of CSGs i.e., threat protection. This is considered as the core because usage of the cloud occurs outside the protection solutions of conventional enterprise scope. For example, the IPS (intrusion prevention solutions) and SIEM (security information and event management) systems. In addition to this, the social engineering arises and as a result, compromised accounts are becoming a severe cause for the security failures.
CSG cloud services analyze the user behavior on cross-cloud for identifying malicious as well as negligent insider threats. Not only the internal threat but, external threats are also encountered by this security technology. The threat protection involves machine learning that is used to create a behavior model for employees with a baseline for each of them. Any of the activities that violate the baseline is suddenly flagged in the threat form. Four primary modes of CSG deployment are available, which covers different devices, users, and access scenario:
- Log Collection: Consumes all the event logs from the existing infrastructure like SIEMs, firewalls, and secure web gateways
- Forward Proxy: Establishes in between endpoints and cloud services in which components or the network routers traffics to the proxy of CSG
- Reverse Proxy: Establishes in between the endpoints and cloud services in which cloud services or the identity providers routes traffic toward CSG proxy
- API: Establishes a direct integration between the cloud service and CSG. Based on API of the cloud provider, CSGs will be capable of viewing activities, contents, and applying sudden actions.
4. Data Security
When an enterprise shifts work from on-premises to the cloud, employee acquires access to data from off-network environments and unmanaged devices. So, to learn and restrict the data usage, organizations need to adopt CSGs cloud services.
Conclusion
Prevention is better than cure – This proverb is stated here to make feel to the organization that instead of ignoring the cloud security risks they should adopt the best cloud security measures on time. Otherwise, things may go worst without any prior notice and left with no point to recover them. Keeping the security perspective in mind here we have delivered information on What is cloud security gateway. This will help one in learning what exactly this CSG cloud service is and what things need to be kept in mind while selecting it.
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