Cloud computing security

Although there are many advantages of Cloud computing, there are associated security issues that come along with Cloud computing. Security is a main hindrance to the Cloud computing development and progress. Generally, within the cloud computing platform service provider embody the professionals that are delegated with the responsibilities of taking care of data and the security that defines the system (Carlin & Curran, 2013). As such, service providers must create policies and procedures that are crafted to overcome security issues which are authentication systems, visualization, and cryptography which enforce the governance and management (“Security in Cloud Computing, “2014). The major security concern is that the service providers have a great responsibility of managing data of millions of users worldwide. The demeaning aspect of this is that other users of the same cloud provider can gain access to other customers’ accounts, through the path of the providers of the Cloud networkers if there are no security actions taken.

Cumulatively, this given aspect puts an individual’s personal data at risk of access by other users, since the Cloud holds a lot of information and data. With such security loops available to the public, cyber terrorists have set their new targets at the Cloud platform as such errors may be the loopholes for most of these hackers to gain access to the information stored there (Zissis & Lekkas, 2012). While still on the security of the multi-tenancy, the second issue of concern is the high capability of resource sharing that plays a key role in Cloud computing. For instance, virtualization is the main way to achieve an impeccable multi-tenancy, an aspect that deems both virtualization and Multi-tenancy to have almost similar security issues.

This means that the user must possess the credentials to get access to XML documents. For example, in an online class setting, a lecturer (based on her or his credentials) generally has access to all student’s academic information given that he or she maintains constant contact with the student, while the secretary (according to her or his credentials) is restricted to access administrative information only for he or she is involved in administrative affairs of the student. Access can also be granted to the whole XML document or portions of it depending on the credentials, bestowed upon the user. For example, in most learning settings, the lecturer credentials limit him or her to access the medical information of the student and solely concentrates on enabling the lecturer access academic details of the student.

A system is to be designed to control user access to the semantic web and the XML according to his or her credentials. Up to this point, it has been clearly observed that security has become a serious issue and an obstacle to the progress and advancement of Cloud computing with well-known problems like data loss, botnet and phishing posing threats to software and data from both individuals and organizations. All in all, Cloud computing is losing control gradually, and the responsibilities of the operations fall into the hands of some third parties where they can be one or more. New security systems have to be introduced in order to minimize fears from customers and improve services provided by them (“Cloud Computing Security Issues and Challenges, “2011).