Remember the era when the idea of having any association with being in a Cloud automatically conjured up negative images and connotations? When it was synonymous with being the bumbling idiot, having two left feet, being behind the times or just plain ignorant?

Happy New Year! It is 2014.

And if you are not in the Cloud or preparing to go to the Cloud, then…

Well,

Now you might just become the town idiot.

I know, I know, it’s a different kind of of Cloud, but you get my point.

You do get it right?

Warning.

While it is now hip to be in the Cloud, it will still rain,

And,

You could slip and fall.

So let’s make sure you are prepared.

Here,

Stock up on these 7 security umbrellas when selecting a Cloud provider.

Access privileges-Cloud service providers should be able to demonstrate they enforce adequate hiring, oversight and access controls to enforce administrative delegation.
Regulatory compliance-Enterprises are accountable for their own data even when it’s in a public cloud, and should ensure their providers are ready and willing to undergo audits.
Data location-When selecting a hosting provider, it’s important to ask where their datacenters are located and if they can commit to following specific privacy requirements.
Data segregation-Most public clouds are shared environments, and it is critical to make sure hosting providers can guarantee complete data data segregation for secure multi-tenancy.
Data recovery-Enterprises must make sure their hosting provider has the ability to do a complete restoration in the event of a disaster.
Monitoring and reporting-Monitoring and logging public cloud activity is hard to do, so enterprises should ask for proof that their hosting providers can support investigations.
Business continuity-Businesses come and go, and enterprises should ask hard questions about the portability of their data to avoid lock-in or potential loss if the business fails.