Cielo 1

Jarod Cielo
Marsha Salyer
Business Communications
13 December 2016
Research on Cloud Computing
Cloud computing is a term that covers the delivery of hosted computing resources, such
as applications and data centers, over the internet. Processes with cloud computing have been
present over the past one or two decades, from IBM business operations to Apples iCloud. The
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) definition of cloud computing provides
a model composed of five essential characteristics: on-demand self-service, broad network
access, resource pooling, rapid elasticity, and measured service. The definition also includes four
deployment models and three service models. The four deployment models are organized
between private, public, hybrid, and community clouds (Mell and Timothy). Private clouds
provide from a businesss data center to internal users, public cloud services are delivered via the
internet by a third-party provider on-demand, and hybrid cloud models take advantage of both
the mass productivity of public cloud service and security of private cloud service (Rouse). The
three service models in cloud computing are categorized as Software, Platform, or Infrastructureas-a-Service (IBM Corporation). The pay-per-use nature of the computing resources is very
much like the consumption of utilities, like electricity, instead of needing to maintain physical
computing infrastructures. With the nature of cloud computing transactions and exchanges, there
is much scalability utilized by customers of cloud service based on the resource usage. Three
notable aspects of Cloud Computing include that of storage, access, and security.

Cielo 2
Cloud storage is a component of cloud computing that covers the storage of data from a
clients local vessel to a remote collective infrastructure. In the present day, cloud storage
processes apparent on the surface include Apples iCloud service. There are also services in file
hosting, such as Dropbox, and file sharing (the latter being the concern for many copyright
issues). Cloud storage is a basic function of most cloud computing providers. For most internet
services, items such as accounts and emails are instantly reiterated back and forth between the
local device and the providers network. Service models for cloud storage remotely maintain,
manage, and back up data while making the data available to users over a network. Public cloud
storages provide multitenant storage environments mostly for unstructured, incomputable data,
and charge on a basis similar to utilities. Users are charged on a per-consumption, monthly rate
(Rouse, Cloud storage). Within the service models, Cloud storage is mostly provided by the
Infrastructure-as-a-Service model. The other service models give consumers very little to no
control over storage, but IaaS type services allow for control over storage, operating systems,
deployed applications, and possibly some over select network components like hosted firewalls
(Mell and Timothy). Cloud also storages achieve high durability through the production of
different copy-versions. Private cloud storage services are on-premises, dedicating storage
environments behind an organizations firewall. Services by Amazon, Google, and Microsoft
corporations, all three with which Apple has signed respective acknowledgements and deals
(McLaughlin and Tsidulko), dominate the market in public cloud storage. However, the surface
area for attack is more prominent in cloud storage due to the outsourcing of data (Northcutt).
Provider stability is also affected by factors such as bankruptcy, change of focus, mergers or
buy-outs, or country/domain changes (Butler).

Cielo 3
The accessibility with cloud computing and cloud-based services is notable attribute to
the services, and its functionality is one that can be witnessed simply with the opening of ones
internet browser or the data allotment to a phone. Access to cloud services for most users is via
self-service, eliminating the amount of time normally elapsed for other processes (IBM
Corporation). Examples include Spotify, Apples iTunes, and the respective media applications
of other companies, which routinely access the cloud to back up data with the acquisition of new
songs and media. Microsofts Office 365 and Google Docs -both of which can be defined as
SaaS type services- display accessibility through a location factor, in that these programs allow
for users to access their software through different computers and even mobile devices. With
services such as these, consumers may access the providers applications from various devices
and through browsers or programs (Mell and Timothy). The cloud has become essential to the
operation and functionality of todays mobile devices, and according to the Australian
Communications Consumer Action Network, the first priority of any cloud service should be
access (Hollier).
Cloud security can be outlined between the cloud providers (providing SaaS, PaaS, IaaS)
and the customers of those organizations, both of whom share the responsibility. The providers
must take measures to ensure total security over their infrastructures and customer data, while
the customers must put good effort into fortifying their authentications (Yunus). The threat to
cloud security is related over these two dimensions: the data may be lost due to equipment
failure, or mishandled by the provider. There are several types of controls behind the security
architecture of cloud computing, but the ones most often found are categorized within four
groups: deterrent control, which notes attackers about adverse consequences; preventive control,
which strengthens cloud authentication; detective control, which detects incidents that occur and

Cielo 4
signals other controls; and corrective control, which limits damage done using methods such as
system backups and restore (Krutz and Vines). Cloud services should be secured through at least
four areas of concern: Identity management, physical security, personnel security, and privacy.
In regard to identity management, providers are to either merge customer identification into their
own system, use a biometric identification system, or use their own management system
(Chickowski).
Cloud computings definition terms the hosting of computer services, though its
widespread use might deem it ambiguous. By default, cloud computing is already embedded into
the basic functionality of the internet and its global usage. Its development will most likely go
further and undergo continuous change as the needs and wants of companies and individuals
evolve.

Works Cited
Butler, Brandon. "What to do if your provider goes belly up." 2 June 2014. Network World from
IDG. Document. 31 October 2016.
Chickowski, Ericka. "Identity Management In The Cloud." 25 October 2013. Information Week.
Document. 31 October 2016.
Hollier, Scott. The accessibility of cloud computing . Ultimo, New South Wales, 1 August 2014.
Document.
IBM Corporation. "What is cloud computing." 9 June 2016. International Business Machines
Corporation Web site. Document. 10 October 2016.

Cielo 5
Krutz, Ronald L. and Russel Dean Vines. "Cloud Security: A Comprehensive Guide to Secure
Cloud Computing." Cloud Computing Security Architecture. Indianapolis: Wiley India
Pvt. Limited, 2010. 179-80. Print.
McLaughlin, Kevin and Joseph Tsidulko. "Cloud Makes For Strange Bedfellows." 16 March
2016. Computer Reseller News Web site. Document. 24 October 2016.
Mell, Peter and Grance Timothy. The NIST Definition of Cloud Computing. Technical.
Gaithersburg, MD: National Institue of Standards and Technology, 2011. Document.
Northcutt, Stephen. "The Attack Surface Problem." 7 November 2007. Sans Technology Institute
| Security Laboratory. Document. 31 October 2016.
Rouse, Margaret. "Cloud Computing." 2015. TechTarget Web site. Document. 10 October 2016.
. "Cloud storage." 16 May 2016. TechTarget Web site. Document. 24 October 2016.
Yunus, Mamoon. "'Swamp computing' aka. Cloud Computing." 28 December 2009. Web
Security Journal Web site. Document. 31 October 2016.