Microsoft Azure Cloud Security is a service platform that supports several operating systems, programming languages, and tools, and devices. From Java to Python, and from Windows devices to Android. Moreover, Azure Cloud Security is also explicitly designed to handle millions of customers while providing its cloud-based assets.
Thus, if the service seems like a viable and sufficient way to secure organizational assets, that is because it is. In addition to the above, here are five of the best features of azure cloud security.
1. The Azure Advisor
Even though you and your team may be tech-savvy, when it comes to using any new software or hardware, there will be gaps in knowledge at the very beginning. Rather than forcing new users to self-fulfill this gap, Microsoft provides The Azure Advisor. This is a personalized cloud consultant that will help you optimize and make the best of your Azure Cloud Security. Some of these recommendations include performance, use of resources, and security.
The Azure Advisor not only provides recommendations that can improve your overall security for any solution deployed in Azure, but it also streamlines the entire process. This means that you can focus your time and attention on other matters.
2. Application Insights
Specific for web developers, Application Insights is a part of the Application Performance Management (APM) service. With this service, you can monitor all live web applications and get information regarding any anomalies that may be seen. For instance, you will be alerted to crashes, service failures, or other performance issues, but you will also receive data on each of these issues. Besides, you will also receive additional information that will help you with need-to-know information such as times when most users are on, the overall responsiveness of the app, and so forth.
All of this is placed into charts and tables for easier-to-map analytics.
3. Identity and Access Management
First and foremost, the Security and Audit solution provides an extremely comprehensive built-in search query function to pinpoint notable issues. This also comes with the Security and Audit dashboard, which provides monitoring logs. This allows you to not only measure the state of your security overall but also gives you information on all events in the timeline you set (be it the last seven days, 24 hours, etc.) This means you can identify and access who is using the system and what they are doing. For those who want an extra layer of security, this is extremely helpful in ensuring that, should any discrepancy occur, and you can immediately pinpoint what might be going on.
4. Encryption in Transit/at Rest
Encryption at rest refers to the baseline data encryption to ensure privacy and compliance. Essentially, it is when data is stored within the system. For data that is at rest Azure Cloud Security provides the following features:
- Storage Service Encryption: provides you with the ability to automatically encrypt any data that is stored.
- Client-side Encryption: also allows you to auto-encrypt data
- Azure Disk Encryption: It gives you the ability to encrypt OS and data disks used by an IaaS virtual machine.
On the other hand, Encryption in transit refers to the protection of data as it is transmitted across networks. For data that is in transit Azure Cloud Security provides the following:
- Transport-level Encryption: For example, HTTPS when data is transferred out of the storage site.
- Client-side Encryption: data is encrypted before it is transferred to storage. Data is then decrypted after it is transferred out of storage.
- Wire encryption: affects Azure share files such as SMB 3.0 encryption.
5. Application Diagnostics
One of Azure’s biggest aspects is that there is a large focus on applications, whether it is additional services that help performance or services that offer another layer to security. One of the drawbacks of this is that the possibility of an application to fail is imminent. Azure Cloud Security has tackled this issue head-on with the application diagnostics feature.
Application Diagnostics works explicitly for the information that is captured by web applications. This works through ASP.NET, which uses the system.Diagnostics.Trace to log information. Besides, it offers information on two types of events: performance errors and outright failures.
Further, events are grouped in the following segments:
- All (displays all the events present)
- Application Errors (shows exception events)
- Performance (shows performance events)
Overall, Azure Cloud Security is a competent and sufficient security and storage service that will protect your data and give you all the tools you need to ensure faith in the system.
Reference: https://www.researchsnipers.com/5-best-features-of-azure-cloud-security/
