Regulations and Data Privacy Among Top Concerns With Cloud, Survey Finds

A new survey released today highlighted factors that have kept business and IT leaders wary of using the cloud. The study found that 10 issues that are the most serious obstacles to cloud adoption by businesses. The biggest concerns at the top of that list were government regulations not keeping pace with the market, exit strategies, international data privacy and legal issues.

The Cloud Market Maturity study, conducted by the Cloud Security Alliance and the ISACA, surveyed 250 business respondents from almost 50 countries representing 15 different industries. About 85 percent of the respondents said they were cloud users.

The other top confidence issues that the survey found regarding cloud adoption were contract lock in, data ownership and custodian responsibilities, longevity of suppliers, integration of cloud services with internal ones, credibility of suppliers and testing and assurance.

ISACA's International President Greg Grocholski noted that many of the top concerns found in the study were related to governance issues, such as regulations and data privacy. This will be a critical area where industry leaders need to work together in order for cloud services to advance, he added.

The study also looked at the most important factors that businesses consider when implementing cloud-based solutions. The top factors that the respondents said influenced their decisions in regards to cloud adoption were business enablers and financial considerations.

Many of the respondents also indicated that they feel the cloud market is lacking in innovation. Almost a quarter of the participants said that threes no or little innovation whatsoever. But almost all of the respondents felt that cloud computing was far from reaching maturity, and there is still much room left for growth and innovation.

[See Related: Building A Cloud Computing Road Map ]

Jonathan Camhi has been an associate editor with Bank Systems & Technology since 2012. He previously worked as a freelance journalist in New York City covering politics, health and immigration, and has a master's degree from the City University of New York's Graduate School ... View Full Bio