HP launches Cloud access security platform

Organizations are increasingly deploying cloud applications for business functions such as email, collaboration and customer relationship management. Gartner predicts that SaaS is estimated to be a $32.4 billion business by the end of 2015, growing at an approximate CAGR of 20.7% through 20181. Accordingly, this surge in enterprise Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) deployments, aligned with the increasing volume and value of corporate data, presents new challenges for CISOs responsible for ensuring sensitive data remains secure.

The Cloud Access Security Protection platform provides ‘borderless’ protection of the data itself—at rest, in use or in motion. Offering the cloud access security broker from Adallom, the new platform also incorporates automatic data classification and persistent encryption with HP Atalla Information Protection and Control (IPC), an added-value security solution that automatically encrypts files when moving information in and out of the cloud or across platforms. With its newly expanded portfolio, HP helps organizations further accelerate the move towards secure cloud applications by managing risk with advanced data-centric protection.

“Organizations are continuing to transition workloads to the cloud and increasingly adopt cloud applications, which present a breadth of new security challenges for CISOs including compliance, activity monitoring and access,” said Albert Biketi, general manager, HP Security, Atalla. “Data-centric security should be pervasive in the cloud; our recent acquisition of Voltage Security (@hp_voltage), along with select partnerships with companies like Adallom (@Adallom), demonstrates our commitment to helping customers protect sensitive data as it travels throughout and beyond the enterprise.”

With the Cloud Access Security Protection platform, organizations can gain visibility into users, data, access and activities, as well as support a diverse set of governance and protection features to ensure that data remains secure. Specifically, the platform addresses critical data protection needs for Payment Card Industry (PCI) compliance, data de-identification and risk reduction associated with use of Personal Identify Information (PII), Protected Health Information (PHI) and more. Additionally, the platform expands data-centric security to protect SaaS applications, offering customers flexible, non-intrusive deployment options for cloud application security.

Protecting SaaS Applications from the Weakest Link: Users
While SaaS as a class is built on secure practices, the way employees actually utilize SaaS is not reliably secure. With the Cloud Access Security Protection platform, organizations can audit activities performed in SaaS applications and develop intelligence to predict and protect from IT security issues. Providing SaaS end-user enablement while maintaining IT control and visibility, the platform also offers tools to build a consistent security policy across all cloud applications at use within an enterprise.

In the same way credit card companies flag transactions that appear outside the ordinary for a specific cardholder, the platform’s cloud access security broker technology stops attacks by providing real-time reports of suspicious behavior. This information proves valuable for organizations with security concerns around user behavior and sensitive data as they migrate to cloud applications.