SCOPE Alliance Members Contemplate Cloud Security

By Leslie Guth, SCOPE Alliance

Security was a major topic at SCOPE’s May “Cloud Computing in Telecom” workshop. Two presenters focused specifically on cloud security, and attendees showed significant interest in the topic. This was no surprise, since security is a big concern for most organizations. According to recent industry research from TheInfoPro, 72% of organizations are "extremely concerned" or "very concerned" about cloud security.

How can SCOPE help alleviate such concerns for users and service providers considering the use of cloud computing in telecom?

According to presenter Rao Vasireddy of Alcatel-Lucent, who advocated using “Secure by Design” principles to secure the cloud, many think that security in cloud computing is completely different than in a traditional Telco environment. On the contrary, Vasireddy believes that the problems are essentially the same. He suggests simplifying the complex issues of cloud security via a security baseline that leverages current practices, standards, and well-known security attributes as metrics. For example, key attributes include access control, authentication/authorization, data confidentiality, privacy, availability, data integrity, communication security, and non-repudiation. According to Vasireddy, metrics for them can be analyzed to identify shortcomings or security gaps and determine how to apply countermeasures.

The “secure by design” process has been useful in developing and maintaining Telco equipment and solutions. SCOPE is interested in how that same process could be used to evaluate cloud security. We look forward to continuing discussion and debate as we explore the opportunities cloud computing can offer users and service providers. We invite everyone interested in the topic to visit the SCOPE website at www.scope-alliance.org and let us know your specific concerns.

Not a SCOPE member? Join now at http://scope-alliance.org/join.

For more information about the SCOPE Alliance, please visit www.scope-alliance.org.

Leslie Guth (Alcatel-Lucent) is the 2010 Chair of the SCOPE Alliance. You can reach her via the Alliance’s press representative, Karen Riley Sawyer of Nereus, at kriley@nereus-worldwide.com.