Redefining Security in 2021

2021 has started with a sudden change in how IT and computing work. Remote work culture and business assessments based on the changing trends have enabled another paradigm shift in computing. The evolution of cloud computing standards and security associated with the entirety of this evolution is sending ripples in every direction.

I have said it before, and I will say it again; when security systems evolve, the threats evolve too. Alibaba Cloud has made remarkable developments when it comes to providing end-to-end security solutions to enterprises, online businesses, websites, and everything on the cloud. Alibaba Cloud provides security assurance and manages the infrastructure to ensure an unhinged delivery process.

Alibaba Cloud has worked tirelessly to develop cloud-native security services that showcase an adaptive architecture. By default, these services provide extensive monitoring and metrics collection capabilities to ensure real-time and continuous threat assessment for a better security structure.

This article will capture and list the massive security solutions overlay provided by Alibaba Cloud. We will distribute security solutions by defining security needs in today’s changing IT-sphere.

Security Practices for 2021

A Bit of History

Computer security threats started long before the Internet and the cloud became common entities. It all started with ARPANET and expanded from there. Cybersecurity and its threats became more apparent with the evolution of computers and security. While the threats were very real back then, they were extremely visible compared to today.

Status Quo

Today, the threats have evolved to use the technology that we leverage for productivity. AI-based threats are very real, disinformation on social media, synthetic identities, data breaches, DDoS attacks, API breaches, and a lot more. The question is, how can you pose an effective shield from these malicious threats?

Security Usage Scenarios

Alibaba Cloud created a set of tools to defend against the latest threats to cyber or cloud security. Let’s discuss different scenarios using advanced visualizations to understand how each security solution presents an effective shield for a specific scenario.

Cloud Security

Alibaba Cloud security solutions are designed as highly viable defense systems against Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks, web attacks, and server attacks. These attacks pose a severe threat to on-premise assets and organizations’ service values. In this scenario, we will showcase the Anti-DDoS service and Alibaba Cloud Web Application Firewall.

Let’s take a look at the information flow on the chart below:

Alibaba Cloud includes highly seasoned and unified security policies that offer centralized management for both on-premise and cloud-based resources. Alibaba Cloud also shares information about any such attacks with its customers that may be running self-managed environments.

Alibaba Cloud Web Application Firewall (WAF) and Anti-DDoS Pro provide the functionality to protect on-premise and cloud resources like ECS instances. These security solutions also help with the security requirements of customers operating with other service providers or an on-premise data center.

Alibaba Cloud Security Center is a one-stop resource management engine that helps secure data center servers. Web Application Firewall (WAF) provides management and control on data flow using the port forwarding functionality.

Online Business Protection

Maintaining an uninterrupted online business is the key for organizations to extract profits. Alibaba Cloud provides a safety net that wards off DDoS attacks and other types of web attacks that may end up in service breaks in business to maintain reliable and available services.

Let’s use an e-commerce website, where huge traffic fluctuations can be recorded, as an example. Alibaba Cloud provides an end-to-end solution with deep integration with cloud resources and maintains end-to-end security by enabling Web Application Firewall, Anti-DDoS service, the SSL certificate service, and a Security Center. In this scenario, Alibaba Cloud ensures that your business is safe from malicious frauds and attacks. They ensure continuity in service by providing stable operations of O&M systems and protect the servers from intrusions and data loss.

Migration in Business

Migration is a tedious process. Whenever an organization decides to migrate, security needs proper attention. Migrating a business to the cloud more than a cloud service agreement and a service provider. It takes a provider like Alibaba Cloud that can ensure end-to-end protection of resources on on-premise and the cloud. Let’s take a look at this scenario on the chart below:

Alibaba Cloud presents a security solution for this scenario by enabling extensive security for public cloud resources and on-premise. You can collectively call it a hybrid cloud security setup. Along with Alibaba Cloud WAF and the Anti-DDoS service, Cloud Firewall and Bastionhost also come into play here.

Quick-Info: Bastionhost is a cloud-based O&M service by Alibaba Cloud that helps manage asset O&M permissions. This centralized service allows unified monitoring of O&M operations and reproduces O&M scenarios in real-time for identity authentication and access control.

Let’s list how this multi-dimensional security solution keeps your migration safe. In this scenario, Alibaba Cloud:

• Enables the continuity of cloud-based or online businesses
• Defends against DDoS and web attacks
• Enables unified monitoring and management for operating procedures
• Enables complete server protection
• Enables network isolation for secure communication between different regions

Alibaba Cloud ensures the continued security of assets with an incremental migration strategy since the migration process works better in stages.

Assurance of Data Security

In this scenario, Alibaba Cloud implements its eight-core enabled Data Security Maturity Model (DSMM). These security practices ensure a seamless deployment of business for organizations. Let’s take a look at the chart below:

The main motive behind this solution is to provide data lifecycle management while enabling data security to provide a unified and all-round defense against attacks.

Looking at the architectural diagram above, you can make out the layers of security that ensure data safety with Alibaba Cloud. This multi-tier architecture provides security with Anti-DDoS, Web Application Firewall (WAF), Cloud Firewall, and SSL.

You can work through the requirements of data classification and protection with sensitive data and discovery protection. This scenario also implements Resource and Access Management (RAM) alongside IDaaS (Identity as a Service) for user-based and cloud-based identity and access management, respectively.

Alibaba Cloud VPC and Server Load Balancer (SLB) ensure a stable environment that incorporates a Key Management Service (KMS) for one-stop management of subscriptions and services without manual intervention.

Website Protection

From basic to advanced and small to large enterprises, Alibaba Cloud has security solutions for everyone.

The Alibaba Group has been the frontrunner of e-commerce, and Alibaba Cloud has brought that DNA to enable high level security features to static websites; a dedicated security center, an SSL certificate for secure connections between the host and user, and a web application firewall to secure your applications and data.

Wrapping Up

Security will always be paramount for organizations. Enterprise-level security has to be in place if you wish to run in the big leagues. Alibaba Cloud provides extensively unified security features that ensure safety in every presented scenario. The services are well-groomed and have seasoned over time to evolve during the IT paradigm shift.