Making Your Cloud Safe: Google Cloud Platform and the Secure Enterprise

SADA Says | Cloud Computing Blog

By Simon Margolis | Associate CTO, AI & ML

Because the cloud operates according to a different paradigm than traditional platforms, it is important to have an understanding of how security is handled and why security in the cloud offers advantages that enable organizations to dramatically improve their security operations by using the cloud for their enterprise IT operations. Especially when considering an environment like Google Cloud Platform (GCP), enterprises should understand how they can rely on the vast and definitive security expertise and continuous innovation that GCP integrates into the cloud experience for their customers.

Protecting Your Own Environment with the Same Security Google Built Itself On

Consider the focus your team can place on strategic issues and initiatives if you could reduce the need to constantly stay up to date and focused on security. The development team for Google Cloud Platform (GCP), for example, includes more than 600 security experts, many of whom are pioneers in the field of digital threat protection. This level and magnitude of understanding of security needs for the cloud dwarfs what almost any enterprise could grow on their own. Google has not only built a massive level of brainpower, but they also recognize how to translate security into marketable advantages for customers.

As the industry leader for enterprise cloud, Google also has a significant stake in maintaining a lead over other providers and ensuring their customers are protected against malware and other intrusions. Perhaps the most important aspect of Google’s security discipline is that they operate according to a very rigorous security mindset; security has been part of the Google environment for a very long time and it is manifested in their commercial solutions. The product managers, engineers, architects, and others who develop and innovate for GCP undergo rigorous checks so Google can validate they will operate within their required security framework, and all employees go through strict security training. Through activities like regular audits, compliance checks, a security bug bounty program, and ongoing education, Google has built a culture that treats security as a primary aspect of product development and a customer necessity.

An Ironclad Structure with GCP

In the cloud, data travels across different “layers”, and there are specific security elements for each layer. Google applies an innovative security structure in Google Cloud Platform (GCP) and treats each layer of the cloud stack with strict security policies and requirements that are unique to the layer. From the tight security and disaster recovery measures for physical assets like data centers and servers, platform-specific features like APIs and authentication, to additional benefits like compliance and certifications; GCP is an example of a cloud that can adapt and scale to customer’s needs, but retain its high degree of security and innovate for new security elements as needed.

GCP also offers continuous monitoring for all network traffic and user actions and is able to detect any potential risks or vulnerabilities and immediately address through automated remediation efforts. Customer’s’ applications and APIs operating within GCP are therefore scrutinized according to GCP’s strict policies and are enveloped with the same level of protection that Google requires for its own operations. Any enterprise would be hard-pressed to be able to build that level of security and risk management capabilities on their own.

GCP vs. Legacy Environments

Legacy environments operated according to a fairly simple model, compared with today’s cloud environments; connections among applications were mostly one- or two-way, and there were tight controls over things like transactions (on-premise systems are generally architected to perform a specific number and type of transactions). The cloud allows enterprises to leverage, integrate, and transact with data and functionality from different applications in an effort to deliver more usable solutions. Building a security framework to correspond with the scale of the cloud would quickly become overwhelming, but by working within the GCP environment, an organization can take advantage of the best security minds driving a continuously secure environment. More than five million organizations all over the globe are using Google, and we see customers immediately derive critical cost savings and better security results from using GCP.

In the next two blogs in this series, we will look more closely at the specifics of enterprise security and how GCP handles it, and will address how you and your team can evaluate your security needs in the cloud.

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