How safe is Cloud Computing?

Image sourced: http://bizmology.hoovers.com/2012/01/19/cloud-demand-boosts-it-employment/cloud-computing/

Cloud computing is effectively a service which allows users to save their data online as oppose to a hard drive. For instance, companies who have employees are required to buy the software or software licensing for each of them to store information and data of their work. Cloud computing allows one application to be installed for all employees to access and save their work individually rather than separate software for each computer.

Without realising, you may already be using a type of Cloud computing. If you have any email accounts such as a Hotmail or Gmail, then you are already involved. The software and storage of these accounts are not saved to your computer but to the services ‘computer cloud’. These accounts allow you to store your emails and information online by simply logging in to your account with the server. The advantage of this is having the ability to retrieve your data at anytime, anywhere as long as you have access to the internet.

Even though this is an excellent advantage, if data can be accessed anywhere, how safe and secure is it? Cyber clouds can become targets to cyber-attacks and hackers. With your data and information being ‘out there’ on the web it is easier to access then it would be on your own hard drive.

“Researcher Yingian Zhang at the University of North Carolina and colleagues from Wisconsin and security firm RSA have already shown how this can provide a route to attacking and hacking a cloud. “Because we’re sharing the resources there’s a possibility some information will leak,” Mr Zhang told the BBC” http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-21754034

“Stephen Schmidt, security head for Amazon Web Services said the attack mounted by Mr Zhang and colleagues only worked in the lab. “Those kind of attacks tend to be more theoretical than practical,” he said, adding that the many checks and balances on a live cloud service would stymie such an attack. ” http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-21754034

A number of cloud services are usually located in the US. This means they are not necessarily subject to the European Data Protection Act and may not provide the same privacy and data protection. It has been said that this virtual space is full of spies. This can be damaging to companies and businesses as it can expose the confidential information they contain within the cloud.

“For this reason, Sweden recently banned civil servants from using Google apps such as Gmail and Google docs as they are not believed to be sufficiently safe.” - http://sciencenordic.com/cloud-computing-how-safe-your-data

Cloud computing, the same as many changes and new techniques, has a number of advantages and potential failures. What SLA wants to know is what do you think?