Security fears still an obstacle to cloud adoption

Over three fifths (62 per cent) of IT managers state concerns about security as an obstacle to cloud adoption, according to Kaspersky Lab. The research found that among the IT managers and directors surveyed, less than half of the businesses (41 per cent) are planning to move or have moved their IT operations to the cloud.

In addition to security fears, data protection (60 per cent) and a perceived lack of regulation (26 per cent) were stated as an obstacle to cloud adoption. As a result, almost one in five (18 per cent) IT managers said their businesses had considered but rejected the idea of moving any aspect of their IT to the cloud, and almost a quarter (24 per cent) had not even considered the cloud as an option.

With 79 per cent of respondents representing firms with 1,000 or more employees, this means that companies could be missing out on significant cost and efficiency benefits.

“Cloud technology has huge potential for streamlining IT operations, particularly in larger organizations with more sophisticated IT requirements,” said Andrew Lintell, corporate sales director for UK and Ireland, Kaspersky Lab. “Cloud-based solutions can make IT systems leaner as well as more agile and cost effective – freeing up valuable IT expertise and resources.

Predictions by IDC back up this claim as they state that IT departments, including CSO and compliance experts, should anticipate the fact that they will no longer be asked to deliver IT-security-compliance, and instead just be the referee and guidance provider for secure compliant use of outsourced IT.

Lintell continued: “Our research has found that there is still considerable confusion about the cloud. Companies may be concerned about where data is stored and how they can keep it secure, but they should also view the positive gains. Solutions such as ours help make the management of security for cloud-based services simpler and easier, meaning that our customers can maximize the benefits of the cloud while minimizing the risks.”