What security risks are associated with cloud storage?

Cloud storage comes with real security risks, from data breaches and unauthorized access to compliance issues and vulnerabilities in shared infrastructure. These risks apply to virtually every organization that stores sensitive data in the cloud, regardless of size or sector. The questions below address the most common concerns and show how to use cloud storage responsibly.

How do attackers gain access through cloud storage?

Attackers typically gain access to cloud storage through stolen credentials, misconfigured access permissions, or vulnerable API integrations. Phishing is the most common method: a single employee clicking a fraudulent link can give an attacker direct access to cloud files and shared folders.

Beyond phishing, other common attack vectors include:

• Weak or reused passwords exploited through credential stuffing
• Unsecured API endpoints that allow direct access without strong authentication
• Misconfigurations such as storage buckets accidentally left publicly accessible
• Insider threats where employees intentionally or unintentionally leak or delete data

What makes cloud storage particularly vulnerable is its scalability. The very feature that makes it convenient, accessible anywhere at any time, also expands the attack surface. Every connection is a potential entry point. Strong network security and multi-factor authentication are therefore not a luxury but a baseline requirement.

What are the risks of shared cloud infrastructure?

In shared cloud infrastructure, multiple organizations share the same physical hardware and virtual environments. The risks lie in so-called side-channel attacks, where a malicious party on the same infrastructure can infer information about your systems, as well as in provider-level errors that affect multiple customers simultaneously.

The most concrete risks of shared infrastructure are:

• Hypervisor vulnerabilities: a weakness in the virtualization layer can enable attackers to move from one tenant to another
• Shared network paths: traffic from different organizations travels over the same physical connections, making eavesdropping possible if encryption is absent
• Cascade failures: an outage or security incident affecting one customer can impact others in the same environment

For organizations in critical sectors such as healthcare, transportation, or finance, this is a serious consideration. Dedicated cloud solutions or hybrid environments with strict segmentation offer greater control over who can access which layer of the infrastructure.

How do you protect sensitive data in the cloud against data breaches?

Protecting sensitive data in the cloud requires combining encryption, strict access control, and continuous monitoring. Encryption ensures that data is unreadable to unauthorized parties, even if they gain access to it. Access control based on the principle of least privilege limits who can view or modify what.

An effective approach consists of multiple layers:

1. Encryption at rest and in transit: data must be encrypted both during storage and during transfer
2. Multi-factor authentication (MFA): an additional verification step prevents stolen passwords from granting immediate access
3. Role-based access control (RBAC): employees are only granted access to the data they need for their role
4. Logging and monitoring: real-time visibility into who has accessed data and what actions were taken
5. Regular audits: periodic review of access permissions and security settings

For organizations handling particularly sensitive data, it is also worth exploring solutions for protecting sensitive data at the network level, so that security is not only enforced at the application layer but is also embedded deeper within the infrastructure.

What compliance and privacy risks does cloud storage introduce?

Cloud storage introduces compliance risks because data is physically stored outside your organization, sometimes in other countries or jurisdictions. This can conflict with the GDPR, NIS2, or sector-specific regulations that impose requirements on where data may be stored and how it must be protected.

The most common compliance pitfalls with cloud storage are:

• Data location: if your cloud provider uses servers outside the EU, this may violate GDPR requirements for the transfer of personal data
• Data processing agreements: without a valid data processing agreement with the cloud provider, your organization bears liability for data breaches
• Reporting obligations under NIS2: organizations in critical sectors must report security incidents within strict timeframes, even when those incidents occur at a cloud provider
• Retention periods and deletion: data must be demonstrably deleted after the legally required retention period, which is harder to verify in the cloud

In 2026, enforcement efforts around NIS2 and the Cybersecurity Act are set to intensify further. Organizations using cloud storage for business-critical data would be wise to proactively assess their cloud contracts and security measures against current regulations.

When is cloud storage safer than local storage?

Cloud storage is safer than local storage when an organization lacks the resources or expertise to adequately secure local infrastructure. Major cloud providers invest significantly in physical security, redundancy, and security updates, standards that many organizations would find difficult to match with their own hardware.

Cloud has advantages over local storage in the following situations:

• When local servers are not physically secured or are located in unsecured spaces
• When there is no internal team to apply patches and updates in a timely manner
• When backups are not made or tested systematically
• When there is no recovery plan for fire, theft, or hardware failure

Conversely, local storage may be safer for organizations that require full control over their data, work with state secrets or highly sensitive medical information, or operate in sectors with strict regulations on data location. The key is not the choice between cloud or local storage but the quality of the security built around it.

What role does network infrastructure play in cloud security?

Network infrastructure forms the foundation of cloud security. The connection between your organization and the cloud is a critical point of vulnerability: unencrypted or poorly secured network traffic can be intercepted, manipulated, or blocked. A robust network layer prevents attackers from striking at the very point of entry.

Specific elements of network infrastructure that strengthen cloud security:

• Network-level encryption: encrypting data traffic between locations and the cloud, including at layers 1 and 2 of the OSI model, protects against eavesdropping on the connection itself
• Network segmentation: separating cloud traffic from other internal traffic limits the damage in the event of an incident
• Out-of-band management: a dedicated management network ensures continued access to critical systems, even if the primary network is compromised
• Real-time monitoring: network monitoring makes anomalous behavior visible before it escalates

Many organizations focus their cloud security at the application level and overlook the underlying physical and logical network layer. This is a blind spot. Security that only operates at the top of the stack is only as strong as the weakest link beneath it. Exploring a broader range of integrated security and network solutions can help close that gap.

How does Netways Europe help with cloud security and compliance?

Using cloud storage securely requires more than a reliable cloud provider. It requires a network infrastructure that enforces security at every layer, along with guidance on compliance requirements that are becoming increasingly stringent. That is where we come in.

Through our Compliance, Cloud, and Threat Landscape service, we support organizations in the following areas:

• Secure cloud integration: from Data Center Interconnect to hybrid cloud environments, always validated against applicable governance and compliance requirements
• Network-level encryption: protection of data traffic at layers 1 and 2, ensuring data remains unreadable even if the connection is compromised
• Compliance advisory: translating NIS2, GDPR, and sector-specific regulations into concrete technical measures within your network architecture
• Vendor-independent advice: based on your risk profile and sector, we select the solution that fits best, working with partners such as Cisco, Nokia, and Huawei
• End-to-end support: from design and implementation to management and monitoring of your secure cloud environment

Want to know which security risks apply to your specific situation and how to address them? Contact us for a no-obligation conversation with one of our engineers.