Cloud security is in a state of flux. Actually it’s not really, but discussion is rife across the industry regarding the general state of cloud data and application welfare. Questions flutter around whether particular services are secure, whether multi-tenant clouds can be locked down and whether “spun down” instances of cloud servers will remain secure so that old customer data is deleted and non-accessible.
Where are we headed with the general consensus on cloud security just now?
Of course we should start out from first principles and look to comments made the big name cloud providers who have pointed out that the cloud is only as secure as the controls you place upon it, i.e., virtualized hosting services do not come with “security included” as some sort of free gift… and so a cloud server is really just a server but delivered as a service.

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The proliferation of cloud technologies can be seen through the increasing number of cloud ISVs that are leveraging cloud either by changing the underlying computing model or by completely redoing their product offerings. This number is already bordering on hundreds and quickly headed for thousands as the cloud opens new avenues for businesses and consumers alike. Many business domains are already neatly served through cloud ISVs, sometimes very innovatively. Predominantly, areas like HR, marketing, CRM, collaboration, business intelligence, accounting, financial practices, ecommerce and content management have many options already.
ISVs are using cloud models differently and are at different stages of enablement. Some have reused existing tools and features to re-platform products, some are using cloud services to complement the product while others have built products ground up afresh or are using cloud to host and manage service delivery better. Some are testing the waters by embracing cloud partially and some are neck deep betting on it completely. Different ISVs are in different business situations with respect to fully exploiting the cloud benefits. Based on observations so far, here are nine things ISVs can look at doing next. A few of these may be obvious for some, but these steps could be critical for future business. One size seldom fits all. ISVs need to map their current situation and decide what fits them well and in what order.

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At AT&T Labs in Florham Park, New Jersey, big data is being used to analyze the traffic and movement patterns of people through data generated by their mobile phones to help improve policymaking and urban and traffic planning. The research team realized they could understand deep patterns of how people moved through urban environments by analyzing the flow of mobile devices from cell tower to cell tower. And they wanted to use those insights to help improve traffic flow and to inform better urban planning, not to improve their marketing.

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Recently, we’ve been touting how cloud storage reduces the IT maintenance burden for organizations and, more specifically, how organizations can take advantage of cloud storage while keeping control of their data by using cloud storage gateways.

Erik Linask from TMCNet caught up with us at the TwinStrata booth at Cloud Expo 2012 in June to get the full scoop regarding benefits and considerations of cloud storage and just how easily and securely cloud storage integrates into existing data storage environments through cloud storage gateways.

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Research recently published by Cisco Systems has revealed that cloud usage in the United Kingdom and Ireland is becoming increasingly mainstream.

Cisco, who recently brought out their cloud networking app, found a number of interesting results in their ‘CloudWatch Summer’ report:

• Nine tenths of those polled saw the cloud as an important process – up 38% from last year
• Nearly a third see cloud as being critical to their company – up 24% from last year
• Security is less of a concern although still a worry – just over half saw said they had security concerns, down 20% from last year

This certainly aligns with other research Cisco has done this year on the subject. This year’s Global Cloud Networking Survey showed that worldwide cloud adoption would quadruple by the year’s end.

It could be argued that the numbers almost appear to be an irrelevance if the arrows keep pointing up …

For the past couple of years, we’ve heard the term “Hybrid Cloud” discussed as the nirvana that Enterprise IT is truly looking for as they consider new operating paradigms to better align business needs and evolving technology. “Hybrid Cloud” would be the bridge between the known entity (“Private Cloud”, “resources within your Data Center”, “virtualized legacy applications”, etc.) and the new, dynamic entity (“Public Cloud”). There was just one small problem – this reality was a lot easier said than done (previously written about here, here, and here

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CTOlabs.com, a subsidiary of the technology research, consulting and services firm Crucial Point LLC and a peer site of CTOvision.com, has just published a white paper providing context and use cases on Hadoop For Law Enforcement, an important mission-focused domain ripe for the application of more Big Data solutions. From the report: Big Data, the […]

This post by BobGourley was first published at CTOvision.com.

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Last week we received an email from Thinkfuse, a cloud app that delivers “simple status reports.” To make a long story short, they told us (and their many customers) that they were purchased by Salesforce and were shutting down operations. Here’s a screenshot of the email: Getting bought by Salesforce is big news for Thinkfuse. […]

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