Unless you've been living under a rock for the past couple
years, you’ve either heard of or are now using cloud computing. The Cloud ... for
Likewise, you have to ask yourself these questions: How can I
use the cloud to line my pockets with silver? Can I do it by saving money or by
making more is the real question at hand. In today’s blog, we’ll look at the
emergence of cloud computing as a way of both making and saving money. We’ll also point out some of the movers and
shakers in the industry, as well as identifying some well-heeled interlopers
who are trying to rain on everybody’s parade.
Most people think that cloud computing is a relatively new
technology. The truth is that it’s been
around since the 1960s. A blog on computerweekly.com points out:
“The idea of an ‘intergalactic network’ was introduced
in the '60s by J.C.R. Licklider , who was responsible for enabling the development of
ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network) in 1969. His vision was for
everyone on the globe to be interconnected and accessing programs and data at
any site, from anywhere, explained Margaret Lewis, product marketing director
at AMD. It is a vision that sounds a lot like what we are calling cloud
computing."
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Even back then, while other experts in the field thought computing
would inevitably be rendered as a kind of public utility, it wasn’t until 1999
that the bandwidth required was broad enough to accomplish the task. That was when salesforce.com began pioneering
the concept of delivering enterprise solutions via the web. This was followed by amazon.com, which, in 2002,
started vending cloud storage and computing.
By 2006, this service morphed into a commercial service called Elastic
Compute Cloud, which permitted small businesses to run their applications
remotely. By 2009 Google and Microsoft
jumped into cloud computing in a big way, which legitimized and promoted the
cloud computing concept as a user-friendly resource.
Other criteria that took the concept away from early
adopters to make it more mainstream were the obvious financial benefits that
the technology offered in terms of backing up data, as well as increased
storage capacity without having to invest in new hardware. The downside was that those wishing to store
sensitive data on the cloud had to deal with the worrisome question of online
security.
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| Courtesy of Wikipedia |
Andreas Asander, vice-principal of product management at virtualization
security specialist Clavister, said that once the security issues are resolved, cloud computing services "can
enable an enterprise to expand its infrastructure, add capacity on demand, or
outsource the whole infrastructure, resulting in greater flexibility, a wider
choice of computing resources and significant cost savings."
What Color is Your Cloud?
While the cloud offers a number of opportunities to users,
currently there are three operating models:
- Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) – IaaS provides physical or virtual machines, image libraries, block storage, firewalls, IP addresses, Virtual Local Area Networks, and software bundles to users.
- Platform as a Service (PaaS) – The PaaS model provides a computing platform such as a web server where programmers and developers can run their software solutions on a platform without having to buy and manage the hardware.
- Software as a Service (SaaS) – SaaS users are provided
access to databases and/or applications for a flat or monthly fee. In
an SaaS model, users access the software from the cloud client.
While users can access all of the above-mentioned services
using a variety of devices, some users rely on the cloud to run nearly all
their applications. The cloud services
can be mixed and matched depending upon the user’s needs.
Generally, there are six service models from
which to choose:
- Private Cloud is an infrastructure designed and managed for
the users of a single entity or organization. Corporate data centers are
examples of private clouds. The infrastructure for these data centers can be
either managed internally or by a third-party.
Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
- Public Cloud renders services to the general public. Providers such as Amazon, Google and Microsoft provide public access to their managed data centers via the Internet.
- Hybrid Clouds are created when two or more cloud services from different providers are offered to users. They can pull together some combination of public, private, and community cloud services under one umbrella.
- Community Clouds serve several organizations with a common interest. This way, costs can be shared between two or more organizations wishing to avail themselves of a Private Cloud.
- Distributed Clouds are where a Community Cloud allows organizations to share cloud resources; a Distributed Cloud shares machines located at different locations by a single network or hub service.
- Multicloud uses multiple services to reduce the risk of a single vendor going down and thus leaving the user with no service.
Let’s look at the many benefits that cloud computing has to offer. Cloud
computing, when implemented with safeguards, can save individuals and
especially businesses huge amounts of money on infrastructure, security,
process management, software cost, content distribution and team collaboration.
Ten real benefits that cloud computing offers today:
1. It can achieve economies of scale – You can increase output
and productivity with less people. Your cost per project, unit or product will
go down.
2. Inexpensively globalize your workforce – Your employees
worldwide can access the cloud with any kind of Internet connection to
collaborate and share information.
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4. Reduce capital expenditures – This lowers your need to for
purchasing new hardware, software licensing, and labor to install all of these
assets.
5. You can codify and streamline processes on a global scale –
All of your employees can be using the same software and thus using the same
process to complete work.
6. You can monitor your business globally – The cloud allows
you to manage employee access and security worldwide.
7. Improved access – likewise you have worldwide access. You
can gain access anywhere you have a smart device and an Internet connection.
8. It will lower the cost of training, especially if you
standardize on the use of cloud SaaS (Software as a Service) programs to run
your business.
8. In most cases, it will save you money on annual software
licensing. SaaS monthly fees are usually much lower than the cost for ongoing
purchase of software licenses per employee.
10. You’ll have greater flexibility to add news capabilities,
divest from an existing relationship or change directions. You can scale your
needs up and down seasonally as well as economically.
The Dark Cloud
The biggest danger to cloud users has to do with privacy and
security. Since users are relying on a
third-party to host their data, the primary concern is that the service
provider and/or their employees can access this data. Anyone with access to the data could either
accidentally or purposely alter or delete the data. Since some cloud providers share access to
this information with outside entities, this would mean that the only practical
way to protect the data would be to encrypt it.
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| Courtesy of Flickr |
There is also the real risk a hacker can not only gain
access to a user’s cloud service, but it’s also possible for a hacker to not
only alter the content contained in the cloud, but to lock out legitimate users. It’s not uncommon for hackers to demand a
ransom in order to have the legitimate user’s access restored. (Failure to pay the ransom usually causes the
hacker to delete the users' information.)
It is also possible that hackers can use the information gleaned from a
user’s social networks to hack their way into a user’s computer, tablet and/or
smartphone.
In a recent article in USAToday.com entitled, “Hackers
Ramp Up Computer Attacks That Demand
Ransom,” Erin Coker points out:
“Hackers operating on the Internet's ‘Dark Web’ are
spreading a new, more sophisticated generation of the malicious software known
as ‘ransomware ,” anonymously shaking down anyone with an unprotected computer,
from lawyers and cops to small businesses. Where small groups of anonymous
hackers once hit individual consumers, the hackers have now organized into
crime syndicates that boldly launch massive attacks against entire companies.”
She also pointed out these attacks are usually initiated
when someone boots up, only to find an ominous warning with a ticking countdown
clock, informing them that they have a limited time to pay the ransom or risk
the destruction of their data. This can result in one of three scenarios:
- The user pays up and their asset is unlocked.
Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
- The user runs out of time and their data is destroyed or their machine is locked permanently.
- The user pays and the hacker takes the money only to renege on freeing the user’s data or machine.
The worst thing is that
ransomwar e
“Ransomware has been around for several years, but there’s
been a definite uptick lately in its use by cyber criminals. And the FBI, along
with public and private sector partners, is targeting these offenders and their
scams. . Recently, we’re seeing an increasing number of incidents involving
so-called ‘drive-by’ ransomware , where users can infect their computers simply
by clicking on a compromised website, often lured there by a deceptive e-mail
or pop-up window. Another new trend involves the ransom payment method. While
some of the earlier ransomware scams involved having victims pay ‘ransom’ with
pre-paid cards, victims are now increasingly asked to pay with Bitcoin, a
decentralized virtual currency network that attracts criminals because of the
anonymity the system offers.”
The bottom line is while cloud computing is a tremendous
boon to the public in terms of saving time and money when it comes to accessing
computing power, unless serious security issues are resolved, there could come
a time when cloud computing disappears like a puff of smoke.
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In this article, I presented an overview of the development
of the cloud computing and discussed the different types of cloud services
available. I also cited many attributes of cloud computing but also discussed
some of the dangers and developments that are growing regarding dark cloud and
ransomware .
To read previous blogs on cloud computing and similar topics, check out: "New Year, New Tech," "It's Time for Some Hi-Tech Spring Cleaning," "Attack of the Botnets," or just type words such as "cloud," "cyber terrorism, "hacking" in the search frame.
If you'd like a free copy of our eBook, "Internet Marketing Tips for the 21st Century," please fill in the form below and we'll email it to you. Your information is always kept private and is never sold.
Carl Weiss is president of Working the Web to Win, an
award-winning digital marketing agency based in Jacksonville,
Florida. You can listen to
Carl live every Tuesday at 4 p.m. Eastern on BlogTalkRadio.To read previous blogs on cloud computing and similar topics, check out: "New Year, New Tech," "It's Time for Some Hi-Tech Spring Cleaning," "Attack of the Botnets," or just type words such as "cloud," "cyber terrorism, "hacking" in the search frame.
If you'd like a free copy of our eBook, "Internet Marketing Tips for the 21st Century," please fill in the form below and we'll email it to you. Your information is always kept private and is never sold.
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We have been using Google's cloud services for a couple of years and it has been a great time and money saving asset for our company.
ReplyDeleteThat was really an info-packed blog. I'm still fairly confused by and leary of these mysterious clouds, but like all things tech, we need to get used to it, learn as much as we can, and rely on our resources.
ReplyDelete