Europe has arrived in the cloud issue: The EU is planning an "initiative for a European cloud" in its digital strategy and intends to present it soon. Companies are a step further and take advantage of the offers from Amazon, Microsoft, Google and Co. already long ago.
Cloud services have shown users the benefits of computing clouds, and companies are seeing how they can reduce their IT costs through technology. With OpenStack and other customizable platforms, development has progressed so far that companies can already build their own clouds .
Cloud computing is a growing market of the future and will take on ever-increasing importance. This is shown in a recent study by Frost & Sullivan, commissioned by (ISC) 2 (download option at the end of this article). 57 percent of the nearly 14,000 IT security experts surveyed see cloud computing as one of the most important future topics today. Whether as a DIY or as a purchased service, Clouds will change the data exchange and thus the IT world.
The trend towards your own cloud also carries risks. The new environment offers hackers new attack vectors and security experts can not rely on experience to protect them. The new technology is not evolving in a vacuum, but is spreading in an IT industry that is experiencing a general change in the threat landscape. The increasing digitization of social and economic processes is increasing the demand for IT security specialists. Cybercriminals use Advanced Persistant Threats (APT) and targeted spear-phishing attacks to break into networks. Malware and pests are becoming ever more sophisticated, putting pressure on security officers.Changes not only in technology
In these circumstances, security experts are more in demand than ever before. The move to the cloud is raising the need for security specialists for two reasons: On the one hand, it is important to integrate new technologies, such as clouds, into existing security concepts. On the other hand, companies should not let the issue out of their hands and must discover and close weak points in front of the hackers. Otherwise, security officers will run into trouble in the long run and can only respond to attacks instead of fighting them effectively.
The number of available IT security specialists is dwindling and new employees need to be trained in business processes, even if they have expertise in cloud technology. The best practice solution is therefore a further education of own personnel. This creates a closer bond and a common added value for employees and companies.
For IT security professionals, offering training and financing security certification is one of the key initiatives in choosing an employer. 59 percent said that paying for security certificates is very important to them. The trend towards the cloud is also reflected in the type of continuing education: more and more employees are asking for training and further education in the field of cloud computing. This is the area most commonly cited by 57 percent of respondents when it comes to training opportunities over the next three years.
