The Future of Cloud Security: 5 Essential Insights for 2025

The cloud security landscape is changing fast. As more organizations adopt AI, expand into multicloud environments, and rethink their identity strategies, the pressure on security teams has never been greater. Clarity, visibility, collaboration, and tool alignment are no longer optional, they’re essential.

That’s why SANS Institute is bringing together leading minds from AWS, Google Cloud, Microsoft, and the broader cybersecurity community for a focused, one-day virtual event: Cloud Security Exchange 2025, happening Thursday, August 21, 10:30 AM ET (14:30 UTC).

Whether you’re managing a hybrid cloud environment, building a Zero Trust architecture, or simply trying to reduce complexity across your stack, this free event is designed for you.

Here’s a preview of the critical conversations that will define the day:

Agenda

• 10:30 AM: Welcome Remarks
• 10:45 AM: AWS Keynote on AI
• 11:30 AM: Microsoft Keynote on Zero Trust
• 12:35 PM: Google Keynote: Cloud Security Pitfalls and Mitigations
• 1:20 PM: Expert Panel: Cloud Security Trends
• 2:20 PM: Closing

1: AI is Reshaping the Cloud. Are You Keeping Up?

AI is creating incredible efficiency gains for security teams, but it’s also introducing new risks. Threat actors are using generative AI to speed up attacks, evade detection, and exploit identity gaps. At the same time, security teams are racing to secure their own AI models and workflows.

This year’s event will explore both sides of the equation. You’ll hear from top cloud providers on how they’re adapting their platforms to address AI-native risks and how organizations can safely build and secure AI-driven environments.

This session will cover:

• How AI is speeding up both attacks and defense
• Where cloud providers are focusing to reduce AI-native risks
• Real examples of AI helping with detection, triage, and response
• What you actually need to secure your own AI systems
• What to watch out for in the year ahead

If your team is building, securing, or simply trying to understand AI in the cloud, this session is essential viewing.

2: Zero Trust Is No Longer Optional

The security perimeter is long gone. Zero Trust isn’t just a concept, it’s becoming the default approach to securing identity, access, and workloads. Speakers from Microsoft, SANS, and beyond will break down how to move from theory to real, scalable Zero Trust implementation. Expect case studies, pain points, and practical advice from those in the trenches.

The session covers:

• Core Zero Trust principles
• How emerging tech impacts adoption
• Real attacker tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) and the defensive capabilities Zero Trust enables

If your team is working toward a Zero Trust posture, you won’t want to miss this session.

3: Identity and Access Remains the Hardest Problem

Multicloud access is messy. Overprivileged accounts, misconfigured IAM, and inconsistent policies are still the most common and overlooked sources of cloud breaches, and yet many organizations don’t realize how exposed they are.

This event will tackle the hard truth about cloud identity: most environments have more access than they should, and not enough controls in place.

You’ll get a straightforward look at:

• The most common identity-related mistakes in cloud environments
• How to rethink and evolve outdated access practices
• Steps to build something more resilient and easier to manage

If your team is struggling to manage identities across platforms, this session is a must-attend.

4: Multicloud Complexity Is a Growing Risk

A new SANS survey reveals that most security teams rate their multicloud strategy as intermediate or lower. Tooling fragmentation, lack of visibility, and overlapping configurations are leading to real-world security gaps.

That’s why we’re following Cloud Security Exchange with a live webcast on Friday, August 22, to walk through the Multicloud Survey findings in detail. Register for the event and you’ll be invited to join that session too.

You’ll learn about:

• Where most teams are struggling with multicloud security
• Common configuration issues that create hidden gaps
• Practical steps to improve visibility and reduce complexity across cloud platforms

If you’re trying to untangle the mess of multicloud, this session will help you make sense of where to focus.

5: These Conversations Will Shape the Next 12 Months

This isn’t a vendor pitch. Cloud Security Exchange is built to give you direct access to the people building and securing the platforms your organization depends on every day.

The sessions are practical, the insights are strategic, the format flexible, and everything is free.

When you register, you’ll get:

• Access to all session recordings (live or on demand)
• A downloadable Cloud Security eBook
• 4 CPE credits

If you want to stay ahead of what’s next in cloud security, this is the event to watch.

Who You’ll Hear From

This year’s lineup includes cloud security leaders from across the industry:

• Paul Vixie, Vice President and Deputy CISO, AWS
• Dr. Anton Chuvakin, Security Advisor at Office of the CISO, Google Cloud
• Wesley Kuzma, Sr. Director Security Architecture, Microsoft
• Frank Kim, SANS Fellow
• Simon Vernon, SANS Certified Instructor
• Brandon Evans, SANS Senior Instructor
• Dave Shackleford, SANS Senior Instructor

They’ll share insights, trends, and hard-earned lessons from the front lines of cloud defense.

Reserve Your Spot

Cloud Security Exchange 2025 is a free global virtual event streaming live on Thursday, August 21 at 10:30 AM ET (14:30 UTC).

Whether you join live or watch on demand, your registration includes full access to everything.

Register now to secure your spot — and feel free to share this with colleagues who would benefit.