Note: This article was published in 2020. Software versions, prices, settings, apps and services mentioned may have changed or been discontinued since then — please check current information before relying on it.

In 2020, cybersecurity is of greater importance than ever before. For many people, this can often be an afterthought whether it’s in reaction to something that’s already gone wrong or only following through with habit shifts in non-negotiable circumstances such as for a workplace.

With so many people currently working or studying remotely plus the rise in online banking and personal file digitization as part of life shifts, the line is blurred between the urgency for cybersecurity with both professional and personal accounts. In fact, overall damage related to cybercrime is projected to hit $6 trillion annually by 2021 so there’s significant risk no matter what cybersecurity breach occurs.

One aspect of cybersecurity that often gets overlooked despite its daily use is cloud services. From Office 365 to Google Drive and the Apple Cloud, people use cloud services for a range of data management, file sharing, and off-site work.

Despite this, there’s evidence that this is a vulnerability point for individuals and organizations alike with 43% of data breaches targeting cloud based web applications. Overall, cyberattacks are on the rise with cloud based attacks specifically magnifying enormously in 2020 — with a specific increase of 630% between January and April 2020.

The fact is that many people use cloud services while knowing nothing at all about how to secure them or even the best way to do this. Writing for Forbes, Mike Fuhrman says that it’s a challenge across the board and it needs prioritisation to mitigate risk in both the short-term and the long-term. He says, “It’s important for businesses to implement proper cloud security to prevent a potential organizational breach.”

In order to assist people with getting started, Paradyn produced this infographic, ‘Cloud Encryption Tips For Business’ as a guide for sophisticated data protection. With analysis of the various encryption methods in light of global trends for cybersecurity and overall cloud integrity, this is invaluable reading whether you’ll apply this knowledge professionally or personally. Stay safe and keep up your digital literacy!

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