Cloud Security Risks Lurk In Big Data Projects, Auditor Says

IT security teams should be on the lookout for business units that may be spinning up servers using a public cloud provider for big data analytics projects because it introduces a variety of security risks, according to a security auditor who frequently reviews the software and infrastructure supporting such projects.

It is fairly common for businesses to use Amazon (NSDQ:AMZN) Elastic Compute Cloud, Microsoft (NSDQ:MSFT) Windows Azure or the myriad of other cloud infrastructure providers for big data analytics projects, which require the computing power to conduct large-scale data analysis. While they help capture, manage and analyze terabytes or more of structured and unstructured data, they introduce the potential for data loss, account or service hijacking, or abuse if systems aren't protected and overseen with due diligence, said David Barton, principal and practice leader of the technology assurance group at Atlanta-based UHY Advisors, a business consulting firm.