In its just released 2020 Cloud Misconfigurations Report, cloud security company DivvyCloud notes nearly 33.4 billion records were exposed in breaches due to cloud misconfigurations in 2018 and 2019, amounting to nearly $5 trillion in costs to enterprises globally. From 2018 to 2019, the number of records exposed by cloud misconfigurations rose by 80 percent, as did the total cost to companies associated with those lost records. DivvyCloud notes that it expects this trend to persist, as companies continue to adopt cloud services rapidly but fail to implement proper cloud security measures. “Data breaches caused by cloud misconfigurations have been dominating news headlines in recent years, and the vast majority of these incidents are avoidable,” said Brian Johnson, chief executive officer and cofounder of DivvyCloud. “We know that more and more companies are adopting public cloud quickly because they need its speed and agility to be competitive and innovative in today’s fast-paced business landscape. The problem is, many of these companies are failing to adopt a holistic approach to security, which opens them up to undue risk.” Read the report at DivvyCloud.

WaterISAC’s February Cyber Threat Web Briefing, which convenes on Wednesday, February 26, at 2 pm ET, will discuss threats companies can expose themselves to when they move services to the cloud. This briefing, which will focus on Office 365 in particular, will also offer advice for companies on how to appropriately configure these services and protect themselves.