What is a significant impact on risk when moving from a private cloud to a public cloud?

The transition from a private cloud to a public cloud significantly impacts risk exposure primarily due to the shared nature of public cloud environments. In a public cloud, multiple organizations utilize the same infrastructure, which inherently leads to increased risk. This is because the resources, including servers and storage, are not isolated to a single organization, and there may be vulnerabilities that can be exploited by malicious actors.

Public clouds typically have robust security measures in place; however, the responsibility for protecting sensitive data can be more complex, as it involves not only the cloud service provider but also the organization that uses the cloud services. Additionally, organizations may have less control over the security policies and procedures implemented by the service provider.

This increase in risk exposure can factor in several aspects, such as potential data breaches, compliance challenges, and an increased attack surface. Organizations must be keenly aware of these factors when deciding to utilize public cloud services and implement adequate security measures to mitigate these additional risks.