Without a cloud migration strategy that includes a migration and risk mitigation plan, you risk data loss, security breaches, unauthorized access, and a host of other issues.
Data transfer is one of the most challenging steps in migration. The storage location of data during migration can have a significant impact on application performance and, ultimately, your business.
Risks and Challenges of Cloud Migration
Cloud Service Provider Issues: Remember that the “cloud” relies on physical equipment, and the stability of your business application can depend on the power grid of a city hundreds or even thousands of kilometers away. If your cloud service provider experiences difficulties, your application may have trouble sending, storing, and accessing data.
Standardized Security Strategies: Several embarrassing cloud data breaches have occurred because companies failed to implement good digital hygiene practices. For example, a company forgot to encrypt customer data, leaving it exposed in plain text in a .docx file hosted on the cloud. Without these strategies, you make your data hosted in the cloud vulnerable.
Insecure Access: Given the popularity of this practice, there’s a strong likelihood that users in your organization reuse the same passwords for each of their accounts. Use two-factor authentication to prevent malicious actors from discovering your credentials and accessing your data.
Shared Accounts: Ah yes, the infamous text document containing passwords. Just like employees who reuse the same passwords across applications, sharing the same account means using the same login credentials for the entire team. It’s an incredibly risky and yet widespread practice.
Latency: So, you’ve decided to go for the cheapest option. As a result, your data is hosted on a slow server that is geographically distant from your users. Throughput is sluggish, hindering user productivity.
Compliance: The responsibility for compliance with privacy protection lies with your company, not your cloud service provider. If you fail to comply with rules defined by your local and national authorities, you leave your organization, partners, and customers unprotected and may even face heavy fines.
Solutions to Mitigate Risks
There are many things that can go wrong, but migrating to the cloud is still worth the investment. Here are some tips to ensure smooth operations:
Choose the Best Provider
Before starting the migration, put your cloud provider to the test. Consider developing a set of standard questions to ask before committing to a provider. Here are our recommendations:
- What is your track record of data breaches, and what have you implemented to prevent them from recurring?
- What is your data redundancy plan?
- Do you allow independent audits of your data centers?
- How are my data separated from those of your other clients?
- Do you use data centers or third-party providers?
- What are your security protocols?
- What is your crisis strategy in case of a security breach?
Choose the Ideal Hosting Location
You may be surprised to learn that hosting costs vary depending on the location. The more stable the site and the higher the energy bills, the higher the cost.
To choose the right location, determine where the majority of your clients (external and internal) are located. Then, select the nearest data center to them in a stable area both environmentally and politically. This will help reduce latency.