Microsoft is the latest software company to introduce cloud security posture management (CSPM) software tools. The interesting twist? From within the Azure Security Center service, MSSPs and customers can address CSPM across Azure, Google Cloud Platform and Amazon Web Services (AWS) environments.
Numerous software companies offer multi-cloud CSPM capabilities. But Microsoft commitment to supporting GCP and AWS shows just how far the software and cloud company has come since the "Windows-only" mindset ended a few years ago.
Finding and Fixing Azure, AWS and Google Cloud Misconfigurations
Fast forward to current day, and the big issue facing cloud security typically involves customers and service providers misconfiguring Azure, Google Cloud and/or AWS. Indeed, 90 percent of organizations are susceptible to security breaches due to cloud misconfigurations, according to the “2021 Cloud Security Report: Cloud Configuration Risks Exposed” from application lifecycle security company Aqua Security.
Armed with CSPM tools, MSSPs and customers can discover the cloud misconfigurations and then take corrective action. Amid that simple value proposition, demand for CSPM tools appears to be strong. Indeed, 41 percent of our Top 250 MSSP survey participants in 2021 said they now offer cloud security posture management (CSPM) to their end customers, MSSP Alert research found. We consider that to be a strong figure, considering that the CSPM market is fairly new.
In Microsoft's case, the CSPM feature provides Azure Security Center users with a unified multi-cloud view that includes Google Cloud and AWS security alerts, Microsoft noted. That way, Azure Security Center users can gain insights into security vulnerabilities across their cloud environments.
Microsoft Announces Azure Security Updates
Beyond the CSPM capabilities, Microsoft also announced several Azure security updates, such as:
Microsoft also continues to explore ways to provide Azure tools to help users remain secure and work remotely, the company said.
