And after all this time, we can firmly state in consensus that SAAS security can no longer be afforded to overlook.
A recent study has shown that examining cloud computing accounts that have been compromised is proving to be more and more expensive for organizations. The new research data shared by sources such as Ponenom Institute and Proofpoint have shed light on a very surprising fact that organizations have to lose out on a hefty price whilst dealing with cloud accounts that have been compromised. Their research also revealed that the cost bear is mathematically around $6m each financial year.
This has become a real issue because not only are these compromises extremely expensive to handle, but they also pose security risks as well. Ponenom Institute and Proofpoint are related to cybersecurity research, and they have recently filed a report titled “The Cost of Cloud Compromise and Shadow.” And whilst doing their research, both the institute joined hands to conduct a survey in which they included over 600-700 professionals either related to the IT industry (Information Technology) or IT security industry.
Out of all the professionals interviewed, the survey found that close to 70 percent of the professionals believe these takeovers in cloud computing pose dangerous security risks to the whole organization itself, and at least 50 percent of all the professionals surveyed firmly believe that these attempts of takeovers have tremendously increased over the course of last one year.
Larry Ponemon, who is the founder and is the current chairman of the Ponemon Institute, has made a statement via a press release pertaining to the survey and has said that the organizations should be warned about the alarming surge in the number of security risks that have arrived in the aftermath of the adoption of SAAS by several organizations. He revealed in his statement that the decision to leave SAAS with the end-users or business lines would inevitably be a costly decision in the longer run. The losses incurred by cloud computing compromises are many-folds in nature. The compromises can cause hefty losses, which can even amount to millions, disrupt the operation of the business, tarnish the reputation and reliability of the brands, etc.
The survey revealed that at least 64 compromised accounts get reported each year, and also shared the fact that out of the compromised accounts, nearly 30 percent are those accounts that contain confidential and sensitive information, putting the employees and the whole organization exposed to serious cyber attacks leaving their financial assets and resources vulnerable. Furthermore, the survey done by Ponenom Institute and Proofpoint institute revealed a very astonishing fact that there are some organizations that are still using some cloud computing applications that haven’t received any clearance and haven’t been approved by the government. Also, the pandemic might have also caused this sudden surge in the number of cloud computing account takeovers since more and more employees are working from home and are forced to share data on cloud sources, use less-expensive antiviruses, and collaborate virtually on some expensive tools.
Tim Choi of Proofpoint also shared his opinion about the alarming increase in security risks and said that SaaS security could no longer be overlooked while stressing over the fact that hybrid work environment and remote working has forced people to re-think their cyber-defense strategies and adopt a much more public-centric approach. And, he firmly believes that approaches like the CASB solution will surely troubleshoot complex security problems such as cloud account takeovers.
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