In a recent study interviewing over 5,000 leaders worldwide, Genetec Inc. identified hybrid cloud as the preferred approach for companies’ resource allocation strategies.
According to the report, 43% of respondents expressed willingness to adopt a hybrid strategy for their operations within the next five years, while 18% prefer a fully cloud-based approach, and 17% plan to keep their infrastructure on-premises.
This trend reflects how the corporate world views hybrid cloud flexibility as a valuable asset, focusing on long-term business sustainability.
However, like any technological implementation, hybrid cloud requires careful consideration—especially when it comes to security. By adopting this model, companies will be sharing sensitive data and information across multiple external providers.
With this in mind, we’ve created a guide covering everything you need to know about the "hybrid cloud + network security" equation before choosing this operational model. Enjoy the read!
So, what is a hybrid cloud?
Before understanding the role of network security in a hybrid cloud strategy, it's essential to analyze the concept behind this technology.
According to Oracle, a hybrid cloud refers to an approach where data and information are allocated across different cloud models (public and private), sometimes also incorporating resource allocation in physical hardware.
This strategy allows companies to keep certain operations within a data center or private cloud while leveraging a public cloud for others. To be effective, it’s crucial to ensure seamless interconnection between these environments, considering that the term hybrid cloud also encompasses various nuances, including systems, configurations, and control methods.
Depending on the differences between these elements and how companies integrate multiple clouds or computing environments (e.g., prioritizing hardware storage vs. cloud storage), the hybrid cloud can be further broken down into distinct models, such as:
- Distributed Cloud: A model where public cloud services are distributed across multiple geographic locations, enabling companies to maintain internal management, governance policies, and updates while benefiting from a public cloud’s distributed infrastructure.
- Multicloud: A hybrid cloud approach where businesses utilize two or more cloud models, selecting the most suitable for each objective and workload.
In essence, a hybrid cloud is a mixed computing environment that combines computing, storage, and services across multiple platforms—including public and private clouds, data centers, and edge locations.
By leveraging hybrid cloud solutions, companies eliminate reliance on a single computing environment, enabling more efficient, secure workload management while gaining access to key advantages, such as:
Advantages of Hybrid Cloud
- Greater flexibility: Enables companies to choose where to allocate each workload, combining the best of on-premises and cloud environments.
- Enhanced scalability: Organizations can increase or decrease resources as needed, optimizing costs and performance.
- Security and compliance: Allows sensitive data to remain on private servers while leveraging public cloud for scalability, ensuring regulatory compliance with data protection laws.
- Cost reduction: By balancing workloads between public cloud and private infrastructure (whether a private cloud or physical data centers), businesses can save on fixed hardware investments.
- Business continuity: Minimizes the risks of failures and downtime by distributing data and operations across multiple environments.
- Improved performance: Optimizes workloads by utilizing the most suitable environment for each process.
- Drives digital transformation: By working with modern cloud providers, companies gain exposure to innovation and the latest market advancements.
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Other Cloud Models You Should Know About: Besides hybrid cloud, organizations can also choose between public and private cloud solutions:
Both definitions explain why the hybrid cloud has become so popular, as it brings together the two types described above in pursuit of a common goal: making the company more effective and ready for the necessary market adaptations. |
Importance of Security in an Environment that Combines Public and Private Clouds.
Since the hybrid cloud involves the use of different computing environments, it also requires a more robust security plan and policy, focused on data protection and regulatory compliance.
After all, companies operate in a complex ecosystem where data and applications constantly move between different environments—one internal and one external.
In this context, some challenges stand out in the implementation of this model:
1) Protection of Sensitive Data
One of the challenges associated with a hybrid cloud is ensuring the security of company data, as well as that of clients, partners, or projects, regardless of where it is stored.
Companies dealing with confidential information—such as financial data, customer records, or intellectual property—and opting for a hybrid computing environment must adopt strict measures to prevent leaks and unauthorized access.
Encryption, both at rest and in transit, along with strict access control to critical information and continuous monitoring of these points, is an effective way to mitigate this issue.
2) Governance and Compliance
When using a public cloud within a hybrid strategy, companies must pay close attention to the services provided by their cloud provider, especially regarding compliance and governance.
Adhering to increasingly stringent regulations, such as LGPD (Brazil) and GDPR (Europe), is no longer a competitive advantage—it is a fundamental requirement to avoid penalties.
Therefore, before adopting a hybrid approach, organizations must establish a consistent governance policy that includes continuous auditing tools and compliance monitoring. Additionally, conducting thorough market research is essential to selecting the best external
By doing so, businesses ensure their processes align with legal requirements and industry best practices.
3) Cyber Threat Risks
With the implementation of multiple cloud environments, the attack surface exploited by cybercriminals also expands.
In other words, one of the biggest challenges of hybrid environments is their increased vulnerability to cyberattacks such as ransomware, phishing, and unauthorized intrusions. The more cloud intersections there are, the greater the risks—unless companies proactively prepare for them.
In this scenario, the use of advanced firewalls, threat detection and response solutions, IAM (Identity and Access Management), and regular penetration testing is essential to identify weaknesses in the infrastructure.
Additionally, implementing a Zero Trust approach and multi-factor authentication (MFA) ensures that only authorized users can access data and applications—both critical measures for safeguarding sensitive information.
4) Continuous Monitoring and Incident Response
Detecting and mitigating threats in real time is essential to prevent significant business impacts.
In a hybrid environment, robust solutions for monitoring and rapid incident response become even more critical.
SIEM (Security Information and Event Management) tools, which collect, analyze, and alert on suspicious activities, along with a well-structured incident response plan, are key elements in ensuring security.
Shared Responsibility in Cloud Security
A crucial aspect of a proper hybrid cloud strategy is understanding that, in this model, security responsibility is shared.
In other words, it is neither solely the responsibility of the external provider nor exclusively the company's duty.
While the cloud provider typically focuses on protecting network infrastructure, the organization must ensure data security, access control, proper service configurations, and the implementation of robust internal security policies.
In this context, some key actions within shared responsibility include:
- End-to-end encryption
- Backup and disaster recovery policies
- Network segmentation
- Security education and training
Hybrid cloud security is not just a requirement for service providers—businesses also play a crucial role in this process.
Why Are Oracle Solutions Excellent Allies for a Secure Hybrid Strategy?
Oracle stands out as one of the leading technology providers for secure hybrid environments, offering solutions that combine high performance, scalability, and advanced security.
With Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI), companies can implement a reliable hybrid strategy, leveraging the best of both on-premises and public cloud environments. Features such as end-to-end encryption, advanced identity and access management (IAM), and continuous monitoring tools ensure that data and applications remain protected from cyber threats.
Prime DB specializes in Oracle solutions and provides comprehensive support for organizations looking to modernize their infrastructure with a secure and efficient hybrid environment.
With proven expertise in implementing and managing Oracle technologies, Prime DB helps businesses optimize operations, reduce risks, and ensure compliance with regulations like LGPD and GDPR.
By relying on Prime DB's expertise, organizations can fully leverage Oracle solutions, ensuring resilience, high performance, and advanced protection for their critical data and applications.
