Azure Cloud: Top Security Best Practices to Keep in Mind

As cloud computing continues to find growing acceptance in the global market, there is one service provider that has emerged as a top offering: Microsoft Azure. A top-notch suite of cloud-based services and tools, this offering from the house of technology titan Microsoft is being adopted by a growing number of organizations worldwide. You would agree security is a top priority for organizations going through digital transformation. And, for this, a well-rounded security strategy in the cloud is a must. The security parameters in the cloud are vastly different from those on-premises, with the latter focusing on perimeter security, while cloud workloads require a layered approach.

With cloud computing continuing to find growing acceptance in the global market, there is one service provider that has emerged as a top offering: Microsoft Azure. As one of the top cloud providers, Microsoft Azure has many services and features available out of the box to enable comprehensive security for workloads hosted on its platform.

However, understanding some best practices should be your first step in your cloud security journey. So, we figured now is as good a time as any to discuss security best practices to help companies get the best out of Azure and safeguard your business interests as well as that of your clients.

1. Storage: To ensure a robust security stance for your organization, it is vital to undertake a variety of measures including management of storage and database access, configuring log alerts, setting up soft deletes, auditing Azure databases, etc.
2. Encryption: It is not news that data breaches are among the most prevalent risks a company must contend with in the digital realm. Thankfully, it is possible to protect against such risks via measures such as making use of the latest encryption methods and standards, determining all the sensitive data a company has stored or has access to, etc. In addition to that, one must also set up a backup and disaster recovery plan to assist in case of a malware attack.
3. Secure the cloud network: Companies can adopt a variety of measures to protect their cloud network, starting with data encryption. Besides that, companies can also adopt a zero-trust policy, restrict the number of Internet-facing endpoints as well as open ports, ensure robust and logical demarcation of the company’s networks, and continual monitoring of devices among other things.
4. Safeguard the virtual machine: There are multiple ways in which an organization can safeguard both virtual machines as well as workloads. The key steps you can take in this context include setting up multi-factor authentication and complex passwords to protect credentials, making use of just-in-time virtual machine access to properly manage role-based access controls, regulating access to administrative ports, etc.
5. Ensure compliance: Unless you have been living under a rock you know just how important it is to ensure compliance with not only industry standards but also applicable regulations. To achieve the requisite compliance, the company must seek to find answers to questions such as the scope of workloads and data, the regulations and standards applicable for your company, etc. Additionally, you must also use the Azure Security Center dashboard to keep a close eye on compliance status following various benchmarks at any given point.

There is not even a shred of doubt that Azure offers supreme security for all data, systems, apps, and other tools hosted on its servers. After all, it is a Microsoft offering, is it not? Though, as demonstrated by the means of the above discussion, Azure comes equipped with a world of features and functionalities that seek to help companies develop a protected hosting environment. With that being said, it is imperative to remember that the responsibility for ensuring security lies with the company as well. This is what the aforementioned best practices are for. You can further fortify your cloud-based systems and apps with the help of a trusted Azure development services provider who can help you develop and apply a robust Azure security strategy.