Recently, McKinsey & Company released an article entitled Protecting information in the cloud which discussed the increased use of cloud computing by enterprises of a variety of sizes and industries and the benefits and risks cloud usage entails. The article recognizes that many organizations are already using cloud applications and realizing the efficiency and cost benefits and, in fact, most are looking to increase their usage of the cloud in 2013 and beyond in both private and public environments. But there are issues that are inhibiting adoption, such as risks associated with data security and concerns around privacy and compliance.
The McKinsey article rightly points out that allowing perceived risks to bar further adoption of the cloud is not a realistic option for most organizations, given the many compelling benefits offered. Enterprises must determine ways to embrace the cloud while also being able to satisfy important questions concerning security, compliance and regulatory protection that are hampering aggressive movement to the cloud.