What Is Cloud Security Management? Tools, Strategy, & Benefits

As organizations continue to migrate workloads, apps, and data to the cloud, security models need to evolve just as quickly. Cloud assets have 115 vulnerabilities on average,¹ which could be why 89% of organizations reported a year-over-year increase in cloud security incidents in 2024.²

Unfortunately, traditional perimeter-based defenses simply don't work in today’s distributed cloud environments, where data lives across multiple platforms and locations. That’s where cloud security management comes in.

Read on to learn what cloud security management is, how security management in cloud computing works, the tools involved, best practices for building your cloud security strategy, and more.

What Is Cloud Security Management?

Cloud security management is the ongoing process of protecting cloud environments through policies, tools, and controls designed specifically for cloud infrastructure. It focuses on securing data, workloads, identities, and network traffic across platforms like AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud.

The challenge is that cloud environments don't follow the rules of traditional IT infrastructure. While traditional security assumes a defined perimeter between what’s inside and outside of your network, cloud security must account for constantly changing environments. 

At Aseva, we view cloud security management as both a technology challenge and an operational one – requiring the right tools, processes, and expertise working together.

Why Is Security Management in Cloud Computing Different?

Managing security in the cloud isn’t the same as securing on-premises infrastructure. Cloud environments introduce unique challenges that demand a different approach to security management in cloud platforms, such as:

• Shared responsibility models between cloud vendors and customers
• Ephemeral workloads that spin up and down dynamically
• Increased attack surface from APIs, identities, and misconfigurations
• Multi-cloud complexity with inconsistent native controls

Without a structured cloud security management strategy, these challenges can quickly lead to blind spots, compliance gaps, and increased risk. 

Not sure where to start? Aseva’s cybersecurity experts help organizations design and enforce security management solutions across distributed cloud platforms.

Essential Cloud Security Management Tools

Effective cloud-based security management relies on several components working together, including:

Threat Detection and Response

Between logs, events, and security alerts, modern cloud environments generate massive volumes of telemetry. This creates a data problem: how do you find the real threats in the noise?

Threat detection and response tools like SIEM, SOC services, and automated response workflows help organizations connect the dots and shorten response times across cloud environments.

Identity and Access Management

Over 10% of attackers used stolen credentials to gain unauthorized access to systems in 2024.³ Identity and access management (IAM) solutions reduce this risk by managing who can access your cloud resources and what they’re allowed to do. 

Workload Protection

Protecting traffic moving between your cloud workloads and users requires controls to help enforce policies and limit lateral movement if a breach occurs. Aseva commonly implements Fortinet-based cloud firewall and network security controls as part of a unified cloud security management approach, so you can have peace of mind knowing your workloads are protected.

Managed Cloud Security

Breaches involving cloud misconfigurations cost businesses $5.08 million on average in 2025.³ Cloud services come with hundreds of configuration options, and one wrong setting can expose sensitive data. 

Cloud security posture management (CSPM) tools, which Aseva can integrate into your cloud management and security framework, continuously assess your cloud environments for misconfigurations.

Compliance Monitoring

In Fortinet’s 2025 Cloud Security Trends survey, 61% of professionals said security and compliance were cloud adoption barriers.⁴ Compliance monitoring tools continuously assess your cloud environment against compliance requirements and track whether you're meeting the controls and standards required by your industry.

4 Benefits of Cloud Security Management

Businesses that invest in structured cloud security management see benefits like:

1. Improved Visibility and Control

Centralized monitoring provides a clear view of all of your cloud assets, configurations, and threats, so you know what’s running in your cloud, who has access to what, and whether suspicious activity is occurring. 

2. Increased Operational Efficiency

With the right tools and managed cloud security services, your teams can spend less time reacting to alerts and more time focusing on strategic initiatives.

3. Reduced Costs

While implementing cloud security management solutions requires an upfront investment, it typically helps businesses save money in the long run. Preventing a breach that could cost millions is far cheaper than recovering from one.

4. Fewer Breaches and Compliance Risks

Cloud security management tools help lower breach risks by addressing misconfigurations, enforcing identity controls, and detecting threats early, all while automating compliance checks.

Best Practices for Your Cloud Security Management Strategy

A successful cloud security management strategy depends equally on your processes, just as much as your technology. Here are some best practices to help you define your strategy for managing cloud security:

Define Clear Ownership

Establish who owns cloud security decisions across IT, security, and development teams. Security management in cloud environments is a shared responsibility between your organization and the provider, but within your organization, responsibility must be clear. 

Automate Where Possible

Manual security processes are slow and prone to mistakes. Automated tools can help you enforce configurations and block threats without human intervention, making them essential for managing cloud security at scale – especially as your cloud usage grows.

Continuously Monitor

Cloud environments change constantly. Continuous monitoring, regular assessments, and ongoing optimization keep your defenses current with your changing environment, which is why the Aseva team builds managed cloud security services around continuous improvement, not one-time deployments.

Get Started With Cloud Security Management

Whether you’re migrating workloads, managing multiple cloud platforms, or tightening compliance controls, effective cloud security management is essential to protecting your business.

Aseva’s suite of cybersecurity services helps organizations design, deploy, and manage cloud security programs. Trust our experts for:

• Proven cloud security management tools
• Fortinet-powered network and firewall security
• Managed detection, monitoring, and response
• Hands-on guidance from experienced engineers

Ready to strengthen your cloud management and security strategy? Get started with Aseva today.

Sources:

1. https://orca.security/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/2025-State-of-Cloud-Security-Report-v2.pdf
2. https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/security/blog/2025/11/06/new-idc-research-highlights-a-major-cloud-security-shift
3. https://www.ibm.com/downloads/documents/us-en/131cf87b20b31c91
4. https://www.fortinet.com/resources/reports/cloud-security