01 February 2010
Published in: Software
"Cloud computing becoming increasingly attractive"
There is a misconception that cloud computing must necessarily offer weaker data protection than an in-house server, Kevin McDonald says in IT Governance's latest book, Above the Clouds: Managing Risk in the World of Cloud Computing. Cloud computing can help to defend an organization from IT security threats such as denial-of-service attacks, viruses and worms, he argues.
The risk management process begins when choosing a service provider. McDonald says: "You need to be confident that your business information will be secure. You need to make sure you carry out due diligence on the service provider before you entrust this firm with your vital data. The challenge for procurement professionals is determining what questions to ask, what assurances should be in the contracts and how much risk is being assumed when a service is moved to the ‘cloud'."
McDonald says the concept of "outsourcing to the cloud" is proving increasingly attractive to companies seeking to save money. "The cost is falling dramatically, which means it's no longer rare for a company to consider cloud computing." A company is charged for the use of software applications, and for data storage, just like being charged for electricity. In only paying for the resources used, therefore, operating costs can be reduced. After all, as McDonald explains, in-house data centres typically leave 85%-90% of available capacity idle.
Cloud computing can lead to energy savings too. Running a data centre normally requires heavy investment in generators and uninterruptible power supplies. Cloud computing, however, removes that burden from individual companies and consolidates workloads on high-performance processors.
Cloud computing also means that up-to-date software suites are painlessly introduced across a company "from above" by the service provider.
Above the Clouds: Managing Risk in the World of Cloud Computing (ISBN: 9781849280310) is available in softcover and ebook format.