Cloud storage is a wonderful tool, but only when done right
Quebec’s minister for the Government’s Digital Transformation submitted his long-awaited Act to facilitate the public administration’s digital transformation last week. The legislation would create an internal department staffed by experts in cybersecurity and would be tasked with protecting data belonging to the province’s public sector and its citizens. Minister Éric Caire said that 80% of the province’s data will be stored on private data servers through the cloud. They claim that the most sensitive content will be stored on secure local servers, but without seeing more technical details, we can’t help but be skeptical that either of these storage methods will be fully secure.
We commend the Minister on his intentions to protect our personal information, but we’ve seen time and time again that cloud-based servers aren’t impregnable. An all too familiar example would be the iCloud account hacks that plagued Hollywood in 2014. WhatsApp, the popular “secure” messaging app with over 1.5 billion users, was hacked last May and should serve as a rude awakening for those who rely solely on cloud-based communications tools. According to Business Insider, the NSO Group, an Israeli cyberwarfare firm, was able to access users’ phones and subsequently, their information, through relatively simple hacking measures.
We recognize that cloud-based storage is a wonderful tool, but it needs to be done right. In addition to having up-to-date cybersecurity software, users of the cloud should make sure to have solid passwords and use multi-step log-in verification to better secure the data they store. For government systems where large numbers of people have access to sensitive information, a proper governance system must be put in place.
That’s why we created Evizone. With Evizone Secure Communications (ESC) and Evizone Communications Governance (ECG), your bases are covered with proprietary technology that offers the strongest commercially available system for the secure exchange and compliance archiving of electronic communications. Mr. Caire, if you’re reading this – see for yourself by signing up for a free trial of Evizone today!