Cloud Security Alliance Launches Crowdfunded Cloud Security Management Solution

STARWatch SaaS Application Empowers Organizations to Manage Compliance & Risks Using CSA Standards and Best Practices

SAN FRANCISCO - November 15, 2016 – The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA), the world’s leading organization dedicated to defining and raising awareness of best practices to help ensure a secure cloud computing environment, today announced the launch of its new STARWatch application, a Software as a Service (SaaS) application designed to help organizations manage compliance with CSA requirements. STARWatch delivers the content of CSA’s Cloud Control Matrix (CCM) and CSA’s Consensus Assessments Initiative Questionnaire v3.0.1 (CAIQ) in a database format, enabling users to manage compliance of cloud services with the CSA best practices. CSA is delivering STARWatch using an innovative and heavily discounted crowdfunded model to make this solution accessible to the broadest spectrum of customers.

STARWatch is designed to provide cloud users, cloud providers, cloud auditors and security providers assurance on demand. STARWatch provides users the ability to:

• Manage all cloud service providers and their own private clouds to assure a consistent security baseline is maintained
• Build and maintain a CSA Security Trust and Assurance Registry (STAR) entry and provide customers with rapid responses to their compliance questions
• Perform audits and assessments of cloud provider security
• Leverage the STARWatch solution database format and technical specifications to integrate its capabilities within their own solutions

During the current open beta period, customers may now purchase a STARWatch license with a discount of up to 70%. The discount will expire at the time of the official STARWatch release on February 13, 2017 at the CSA Summit at the RSA Conference. At that time, STARWatch open beta licenses will convert to a full year license. By acting now, customers will receive 15 months of access to STARWatch at a fraction of the one year license price. More information can be found at https://cloudsecurityalliance.org/star/watch.

“Compliance and assurance are becoming complex matters, but they are critical in building the best cloud computing practices and a trusted cloud ecosystem,” said Daniele Catteddu, CTO for the Cloud Security Alliance. “We created the STARWatch application to assist organizations in managing their compliance with CSA requirements. We’re providing a higher level of assurance and transparency and streamlining the entire compliance process.”

The CSA STAR program is the industry’s most powerful program for security assurance in the cloud and encompasses the key principles of transparency, rigorous auditing, harmonization of standards, with continuous monitoring. Currently there are 228 Cloud Service Providers in the STAR program including STAR Self Assessment, STAR Certification, STAR Attestation and C-STAR Assessment.

For more information on the STARWatch application, please visit https://cloudsecurityalliance.org/star/watch.

About Cloud Security Alliance

The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) is the world’s leading organization dedicated to defining and raising awareness of best practices to help ensure a secure cloud computing environment. CSA harnesses the subject matter expertise of industry practitioners, associations, governments, and its corporate and individual members to offer cloud security-specific research, education, certification, events and products. CSA’s activities, knowledge and extensive network benefit the entire community impacted by cloud — from providers and customers, to governments, entrepreneurs and the assurance industry — and provide a forum through which diverse parties can work together to create and maintain a trusted cloud ecosystem.

Contact

Kari Walker for the CSA
ZAG Communications
703.928.9996
[email protected]