Cloud computing has become a popular method of providing a vast range of services to a diverse customer base. With the ability to quickly develop an application and have it ready and running at a moment’s notice, organizations have expanded their business in many ways.
However, as third-party organizations host more applications, data security has become an increasing concern for enterprises. CISOs are responsible for keeping their company’s data secure.
Still, in today’s world, it is next to impossible to provide complete security along with their entire ecosystem, with hundreds or thousands of employees accessing various cloud services daily. Many IT departments have implemented cloud infrastructure entitlement management (CIEM) solutions to help control and manage access to their cloud services.
What is CIEM?
CIEM is a term used to describe the process of managing and monitoring access to cloud-based applications and services. More specifically, it is the ability to control which users or groups of users have access to which applications and data and the power to revoke that access when needed. It also includes auditing access and activity and generating usage reports.
Why Should CISOs Care About CIEM Solutions?
CIEM solutions help IT departments better manage access to their company’s cloud services. By using these solutions, enterprises can get several benefits. They are:
1. Improved Security
CIEM solutions provide a much higher level of security than most cloud services offer. They allow enterprises to monitor and control who has access to their data and when and where it is accessed. It significantly reduces the risk of a potential data breach or unauthorized access.
As a result, enterprises can rest assured that their data is protected. By controlling access to cloud services, enterprises can better ensure that only authorized users can access sensitive data. This helps reduce the risk of a data breach.
2. Easier Compliance
Many industries have regulations that must be followed, such as the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) for the healthcare industry. CIEM solutions can help enterprises adhere to these regulations by providing a centralized way to manage access to cloud services and ensure that data is being accessed in a compliant manner.
Cloud infrastructure entitlement management (CIEM) solutions make it easier to comply with industry standards, particularly those that require access logs. Having these records makes it much easier for IT personnel to investigate who accessed what data and when they did it, which is critical in the event of a potential violation.
3. Reduced Costs
CIEM can help companies reduce costs by implementing a single system covering all their cloud-based applications rather than implementing different solutions for each application. They also typically provide better overall security than third-party cloud service providers can provide.
Many of these solutions offer automation capabilities that can help streamline tasks like provisioning new users and assigning permissions. It can help reduce the amount of time spent on these tasks, saving the organization money.
4. Flexibility and Scalability
CIEM solutions make it easier to scale cloud services as needed, mainly if the service is not under the control of the IT department. Using a CIEM solution, enterprises can scale these resources on-demand through their existing entitlement management platform.
With CIEMs, enterprises can use self-service portals that allow employees to request new cloud services, which can be automatically provisioned. It will enable organizations to scale their cloud resources quickly and easily without waiting for IT personnel to become involved.
5. Unified Management
IT organizations have to control every aspect of their cloud services frequently . Different applications may be hosted on various cloud providers, making it difficult to manage access and permissions.
A CIEM solution provides a centralized way to manage all of an organization’s cloud services, regardless of their hosting. It helps improve security by allowing enterprises to apply the same security policies and procedures across all their cloud-based applications.
6. Improved Visibility
IT organizations need to quickly and easily see what is happening in their cloud environments. It includes tracking access to data and who is accessing it, and from where.
Cloud infrastructure entitlement management (CIEM) provides detailed logs of all activity in the cloud, which can help enterprises investigate any potential violations. These logs can also help troubleshoot issues and improve the overall security of the cloud environment.
7. Centralized Access Control
One of the biggest challenges for organizations regarding cloud security is controlling access to data. Employees often have uncontrolled access to information with cloud services, leading to security breaches.
CIEM solutions help address this issue by providing a centralized way to manage user access. It allows enterprises to control who has access to which data and what they can do with it. It can help reduce the risk of a security breach.
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