The Apple (AAPL) iCloud data breach showed the cloud is not a substitute for good data management practices. What are the key takeaways from the incident? Here are five lessons for managed service providers (MSPs) and their customers.

Dan Kobialka, Contributing writer

September 8, 2014

5 Slides

The Apple iCloud data breach raised questions about cloud security not only for celebrities such as Jennifer Lawrence, Kate Upton and Kirsten Dunst, but also for managed service providers (MSPs) and their customers.

Apple CEO Tim Cook told The Wall Street Journal that various celebrities' iCloud accounts were compromised after "hackers correctly answered security questions to obtain their passwords, or when they were victimized by a phishing scam to obtain user IDs and passwords."

Cook noted Apple will alert iCloud users via email and push notifications when someone tries to change an account password, restore iCloud data to a new device or when a device logs into an account for the first time. These new features should be available in the next few weeks.

Educating iCloud users about the dangers of hackers also is key to prevent another data breach, according to Cook.

"When I step back from this terrible scenario that happened and say what more could we have done, I think about the awareness piece," he said.

What can MSPs and their customers take away from the iCloud data breach? Independent security consultant Charisse Castagnoli recently provided several cloud security lessons from this incident.

Check out this gallery to learn more about the iCloud data breach and steps MSPs and their customers can take to manage cloud security.

Also, I welcome your thoughts via Twitter @dkobialka or email at [email protected].

About the Author(s)

Dan Kobialka

Contributing writer, Penton Technology

Dan Kobialka is a contributing writer for MSPmentor and Talkin' Cloud. In the past, he has produced content for numerous print and online publications, including the Boston Business Journal, Boston Herald and Patch.com. Dan holds a M.A. in Print and Multimedia Journalism from Emerson College and a B.A. in English from Bridgewater State College (now Bridgewater State University). In his free time, Kobialka enjoys jogging, traveling, playing sports, touring breweries and watching football (Go Patriots!).  

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