But on the other hand, storing everything on the cloud and processing it there have had some risks associated with it involving information exposure among others. But, if you keep a few tips in mind, you'll substantially reduce those risks and the cloud will smile upon you.
Reduce the Cloud Computing Risks
Limit Access
If you're responsible for information from a client, make sure that only the people who really need to use the data have access to the account. That way, even if mobile devices get lost, as long as no one saves the passwords automatically, no data will actually be exposed that way, and you won't get in trouble due to any NDAs that you signed.Use Data Protection Services
There are many companies online, like Norton All in one Security Software for example, that offer services for keeping your data secure and backed up additionally, there are many different services such as CipherCloud, for one, that will allow you to consolidate all of your different clouds such as in Gmail, Microsoft Office 365, and so on under one secure umbrella.
When you have many different clouds to work with, it can get confusing and it may be easy to make a mistake that threatens your security. After all, the ability to access your files from anywhere is problematic in that any hacker who gets your account info can do the same without needing to be physically at your computer.
Invest in Remote Wipe Apps
There are many of these on the market, some are even free. An example is Lookout. By adding an app to any mobile phones that have sensitive information either on them, or with potential access to the cloud on them, you can severely mitigate your risk of having sensitive information get out.This is a way to get the cloud to work for you, so to speak. These apps can let you completely wipe all data on a mobile phone even after it's been lost or stolen. That way, thieves can't get access to your sensitive info on the cloud.
Apps like Lookout will also often allow you to locate the phone remotely after locking it so that no one who doesn't know the password can access it. Assuming that our hypothetical thieves don't spike the phone off of the road when they discover they can't use it, you'll be able to track where it is via the on board GPS unit and a remote Web application.
In this way, you can keep your cloud data secure, and also recover any lost or stolen mobile units in a secure state no matter what.
By employing smart techniques to keep your risk low, you'll ensure that the benefits of mobile computing don't have any real downsides at all.
Lindsey McmahonAbout the Guest Author:
This is a guest post by Lindsey Mcmahon. She likes to travel, play and read in her free time. Her interests are entertainment, television and tech, but she is constantly extending her field of view to incorporate interesting news suggested to her by her readers.
