Cloud Data: Who owns it?

October 20, 2014 By Angela Gibson Leave a Comment

My 11 month old daughter, Rachael, is at that stage: “Mine! Mine!
In her world reasoning is pointless, so I let her have it all—–for now. I am still awe-struck by the gift that she is.
We tend to observe and respect stages. And we are often patient—-for a while.
Cloud data has also had its stages.  We have been enamored because it has provided so much freedom and flexibility.
But the novelty is disappearing when we consider cloud data ownership.
That new baby syndrome is fading.
Bob Greenlees’s article Stuck in the clouds: The issue of Data Ownership outlines the dilemma:

 While the immediate benefits of cloud services are typically clear to new users, individuals and businesses alike are becoming increasingly aware of a looming issue: vendor lock-in. As these users amass large amounts of data in their cloud-based accounts, from email to pictures and everything in between, they are learning that exporting that data can pose a significant challenge.
Vendors often rely on the fact that once you are comfortable using their services it is difficult to leave and move that data out or to another service. For individuals, this can mean that their cherished digital data such as pictures, videos, music, email and more may be locked away without reasonable methods of exporting or transferring it to a different service.
The issue is often even more severe for businesses; certain data such as email, customer relationship management (CRM) information, documents, contacts, calendars and company intranet sites are crucial to the daily operations and continued success of a company.
The reduced control that often comes with adopting a cloud service, as contrasted with an on-premise solution, means that this data can remain entrenched within the confines of the current cloud service. This inconvenient reality can manifest itself in several ways, including difficulty exporting the data, moving data to a new employee account when another leaves the company, or moving the data for all accounts to a new cloud service. Innovation, customer satisfaction and overall experience should be the reasons to stay with a cloud service, not vendor lock-in.

Sounds like a really great marriage gone bad, doesn’t it?

Use this list to vet your cloud service provider (CSP) perspective on cloud data ownership :

• What risks should your organization be aware of?
• What legal tools ensure the protection of your organization’s data?
• Can the CSP ensure that the data once returned is no longer held by CSP?
• Can the CSP ensure that its data is not shared with any third parties?
• Can the CSP ensure that your organization’s data is not used for the CSP’s commercial purposes?
• What experience does the CSP have with the administration of your industry data and its legal constraints?

 Contact us for your cloud data project consultation