As I’ve reviewed in recent columns, massive security breaches have penetrated Fortune 500 companies and global governments over the last several years, pointing to major weaknesses in cloud security. In order to combat the multiplying types of threats, organizations will have to make some key changes to their management practices and security technologies.

I've pointed to some of the obvious needs for security policy and management including strong password security, antivirus systems, encryption, and two-factor authentication. But drilling deeper into next-generation security solutions, it's clear that even such increasingly sophisticated technology has to move deep into the cloud to combat the rising threat of cloud and Web-based threats.

There are also cultural, management, and awareness issues in plugging these holes. Most systems today are manual and slowed by a chain of human decisions. A recent security study conducted by Osterman Research and Proofpoint indicated 94 percent of management surveyed said they were not well prepared to respond to a data breach.

For the extended article on the Top Cloud Security tools, Click Here.