Security in Cloud requires new ways of thinking

London, February 3 2011 – A new White Paper from BroadGroup and TZ Inc reveals that the migration of IT into the Cloud is inhibited by out-dated approaches to physical security. In contrast, the evolving Internet of Things is driving the physical world to behave as an information system and manage the risks and demands that virtualised environments and hosted computing services offer.
Physical data centre protection still needs to recognise the benefits derived from intelligent asset handling and remote control of smart devices. Sensors and actuators are embedded into physical objects and linked via IP networks and generate data for analysis and reporting.
The Internet of Things and remote actuation has multiple applications in the data centre, where it can provide data on physical access and environmental conditions. Micro-protection of this kind has implications for infrastructure availability, energy consumption and costs, compliance auditing as well as health and safety obligations. It includes pro-active management of ‘lights out’ data centres.
Next generation technologies offer innovative approaches to protection. An interesting example is from Telezygology Inc. (TZ) and their smart micro-protection systems (ixp.tz.net) which use intelligent locking devices for protection and remote control of assets. This disruptive technology revolutionizes electro-mechanical locking and enables smart devices with embedded intelligence, much smaller form factors and less power consumption.
TZ’s web-based platform provides real-time audit trails and remote actuation. Their intelligent locking devices work with existing structured cable (or wireless networking) and work according to customer’s specification. Cabinet doors, shelves, servers, tiles and plugs can be checked remotely. Devices can be locked and unlocked remotely via a user portal. This technology is fully IP addressable and auditable. The TZ platform is also being used to ensure last mile chain of custody of accountable mail and parcel delivery through an intelligent storage system using a network of software controlled locking devices.
“The Internet of Things brings new ways of giving control back to users of cloud computing services,” commented Steve Wallage, managing director of BroadGroup Consulting. “This next generation of networked smart devices provides a sound foundation for protecting physical assets as cloud computing advances to the next level.”
The white paper includes detailed interviews, case studies and market and assesses how vendors, operators and users should respond. Download at www.datacentres.com

Contact Information

P Low

MD

BroadGroup

Contact via E-mail