Certificate of Cloud Security Knowledge (CCSK v5) Study Guide

Chapter 9. Keeping Data Safe in the Cloud

Data is a precious thing and will last longer than the systems themselves.

Tim Berners-Lee

In this chapter, we will cover a primary goal of cybersecurity: protecting data. Attackers often target companies with the intent of accessing corporate data, which is frequently leveraged for blackmail or financial extortion.

To that end, we will address the different ways data can be stored and the best practices to secure it. We will cover the complexities of data security in the cloud, and investigate essential security strategies, tools, and encryption for protecting data both in transit and at rest. Additionally, we’ll review technologies such as data security posture management (DSPM), data loss protection (DLP), digital rights management (DRM), and encryption that can be used for cloud data security to prevent breaches and uphold data privacy.

Data Structures

Before getting into the security aspects of data storage, I want to define the three different data structures that you will see in this chapter:

Structured data

Data that is organized into a fixed schema, typically in tabular formats such as rows and columns (e.g., Microsoft SQL Server)

Unstructured data

Data that does not follow a predefined data model or schema (e.g., social media posts)

Semistructured data

Data that does not conform to a rigid schema but still contains tags or markers to separate data elements and enforce hierarchies (e.g., JSON, XML)

Storage Security Primer ...