Tips on Securing Your ERP Applications in the Cloud

Understanding that security is a concern when moving to the cloud, in this post we will highlight how organizations can keep their ERP applications secure in the cloud.

Considering the critical nature of the data and processes that applications such as ERP or CRM support, security and data privacy have always put organizations on the fence when it comes to cloud adoption. However, migrations to the cloud are happening more often, thanks to the availability of security services and tools that businesses use to build and maintain trust with cloud and application providers.

Migrating to the cloud can be an intricate process due to complexity of business processes and applications. For many organizations, the move starts with running their former on-premise systems in hosted environments. Organizations with more complex processes usually migrate into hybrid cloud environments. Some business processes are conducted in the on-premise applications, while other processes are managed in hosted environments with convoluted integration procedures.

As businesses need to ensure that their critical data are secure and that they are maintaining compliance with external regulations when migrating to the cloud, the transition process has to be as efficient and smooth as possible. For this reason, organizations need to keep these factors in mind: integrations of ERP applications, implementation of security patches, user provisioning, authentication and authorizations, and solidifying, securely configuring and monitoring applications.

Steps to Ensure Cloud ERP Security

In a report on the state of ERP security in the cloud, the Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) organization indicated that these are the main challenges businesses face when it comes to running their ERP applications in the cloud. The organization also pointed out some measures enterprises can take to ensure a secure cloud ERP:

• Organizations should understand the cloud models (IaaS, PaaS, SaaS) being adopted to support their business applications as it will drive the responsibilities of some of the key characteristics of these business-critical applications and lead to different security considerations.
• Boundaries such as preventing user access and/or features should be clearly defined to secure the most vital applications.
• Implementing security controls will help minimize an organization’s risk of being exposed and ultimately breached.
• Companies should consult with their legal and compliance teams as soon as possible to determine appropriate next steps in the cloud migration process, as they will have to specify which mandates have to be complied with and what type of data has to be specially protected.
• Security requirements such as assessment, monitoring and front-end visibility should be enlisted as important prerequisites for cloud migration as that will keep costs low in terms of running secure applications.

Paying close attention to these factors will help secure your applications and data in the cloud environment.