Computer security is very important for your business, and something you need to consider is what kind of safety measures you need to implement if you will be incorporating any property inspection apps with cloud storage. This hot new method for storing and backing up data is a great option, and can be a very safe way to handle your information, but like anything else, it carries risks. Here you can look at a few of the major concerns to consider, before you decide to change the way you handle your company policies and processes. The Cloud Security Alliance had come up with a list of threats to cloud computing security, and these are at the top of the list.

Data Breaches

It is possible for hackers to extract private cryptographic keys from other people using the same cloud service which your company uses, and that could give the hacker access to your information as well. Depending on what kind of property management information you have stored here, this can be very dangerous. The best way to guard against this kind of problem is to talk to your cloud storage provider and make sure that proper security measures are in place. A high quality, reputable provider is much less likely to be a danger to your data. You can create personal encryption for your data, but this would mean that if you lost the encryption password, your data would be unreachable. In that case, you would probably want to keep backups of your information in a physical location near you as well. The more backups you have, the less likely you are to completely lose your data.

Data Loss

One of the biggest risks to your data using cloud storage is that you are not in control of the location or security. There isn’t much you can do if a hacker decides to get into the system and steal or delete information. It is also out of your control if the location of database is damaged by natural disasters or accidents. If your property management information disappears, and you don’t have physical backups aside from your cloud data, then it is gone forever. This could be damaging to your business, by taking your tenant profiles or portals offline, or losing rent payment information. Again, the best way to prevent permanent loss of data is to keep another back up in a physical location which you can protect and access.

Service Traffic Hijacking

According to the CSA, this is the 3^rd greatest risk with cloud computing. If account or service traffic hijacking occurs, then someone gains access to your authorizations and can watch your site and information activity, steal data, change your information, and even get to your clients. It all depends on what information you are actually storing in the cloud system. The only reason you would need to fear this kind of attack is if you did not protect your personal log-in information. Talk to your cloud storage provider about the authentication techniques in use, and don’t reuse or share passwords. These are good practices for computing in general.

These are simply the top three of which you should be aware when using cloud storage methods for your property inspection app. When used effectively, cloud storage can increase the mobility of your property management team.