It is no news that everything that we do today on our smartphones is slowly transitioning to the cloud -- whether it is the images you store on Google Photos or your work files on Google Drive. And similarly, the data for apps that we so dearly use is stored on robust cloud interfaces.
These can include your social media posts, the videos you make on Instagram Reels among several other applications. And we feel by logging in, securely with encryption, our data is safe and secure. However, that¡¯s not really the case.?
Conventional cloud storage interfaces are like homes with glass walls -- they might have a lock and a door, but everyone can see what you¡¯re doing in it. Google, however, wants to change that.
Today, Google has revealed something truly revolutionary -- its Confidential Computing for the next level of cloud privacy. This Google¡¯s newest platform eliminates the glasshouse and turns it into a conventional brick and mortar house. Basically, it offers end to end encryption throughout -- from the processing to execution.?
While other ways of executing this can cost in terms of processing power, Google has its secret sauce of its own that doesn¡¯t impact performance.?
The Confidential Computing environment keeps data encrypted in the memory and elsewhere outside the CPU. The idea is to give organisations a sense of security that their confidential data won¡¯t be accessed by anyone while giving them complete control.
This sort of offering is the first-ever being offered by any cloud computing service provider. Moreover, to offer this level of security and isolation, adopters won¡¯t need to require changing any code in their apps or compromising on performance. All this is laid upon Confidential VM (virtual machines) that are powered by AMD¡¯s EPYC line of CPUs.?
A solution like this could be helpful for governments -- like India¡¯s -- where they¡¯re working on storing data of Indian citizens to be stored on local server farms instead of outside the nation. Something like Confidential Computing would allow government service providers to even process data in an encrypted manner with potentially no performance hit.
Sunil Potti, General Manager and VP of Security at Google Cloud said in a statement, ¡°Customers across all industries are navigating the complexities of compliance and privacy in the cloud, especially those in regulated industries, such as financial services firms, healthcare companies, and government agencies. These companies want to adopt the latest cloud technologies, but strict requirements for data privacy or compliance are often barriers. Confidential VMs will help us better serve customers in these industries, so they can securely take advantage of the innovation of the cloud while also simplifying security operations.¡±