The Cloud and Your Legacy Compliance Needs

IT professionals have opened the floodgates to the inexpensive entry-costs of, what would have otherwise been, high-dollar processing and data presentation as we move into a cloud-first world. In other words, it doesn’t cost a lot to build enterprise-class functionality into your modern application.  According to a recent IDC study, >40% of modern cloud-facing applications are net-new, therefore permitting previously unfunded applications to run and be consumed by consumers and businesses. This is due to the combination of low-cost, pre-packaged offerings that cloud providers have. This is a very tempting proposition for startups and project teams, but enterprise best practices will soon start to rear their heads as products become more mature. Often, this can stifle the consumption of these new platforms.
A client of Anexinet has begun using an application that processes data at alarming volumes. In the past, this platform would have taken hundreds of thousands of dollars to create and run, much of which would have been CAPEX spend.  However, the data processing capabilities of the cloud can be obtained for a fraction of that cost because they are based on consumption. These business activities are now directly linked to OPEX spending. Despite these cost and use benefits, it is clear that the market of large corporations that have not evolved to accept the most modern of these cloud principles is the larger market.

“…the data processing capabilities of the cloud can be obtained for a fraction of the cost…”

The problem lies with the need for large organizations to meet certain compliance checkpoints such as; group policy lockdowns on workstations and servers, data containment at the subnet level, strict VPN and data containment policies, and legacy infrastructure documentation. Modern cloud offerings, such as Amazon’s directory services or Azure AD Premium, either no longer have these legacy technologies in place or have shifted significantly. This evolution away from legacy technologies makes attestation to specific security controls, and completion of legacy compliance checkpoints a very challenging affair. The blend of Platform as a Service (PaaS) and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) offerings adds another challenging point to the infrastructure checklist.
Modern cloud infrastructure integrators are the key to this blend of services. It is possible to create legacy services that provide modern attestation for IaaS offerings. Incorporating PaaS solutions while describing the security and access model is critical to the success of the startup, as well as the modern project team.  As many governing bodies progress forward to accept cloud technologies, one can only assume that cloud offerings will evolve faster. This gap requires expertise to fill and maintain, something that only cloud providers versed in Infrastructure and Application components can satisfy.
About Anexinet
Anexinet, a technology firm based in Blue Bell, PA, is particularly well versed in Cloud solutions. We often work with a specific focus on Microsoft Azure solutions and how corporate policies and requirements can be adapted to the needs of the enterprise. Our background in legacy infrastructure and application development, coupled with our commitment to modern cloud technologies, uniquely positions us to help you through this cloud journey.
Contact Us
Chris Young, Managing Director – Strategy, Chris Young’s LinkedIn,CYoung@anexinet.com