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1. Privacy and confidentiality. According to White (2010), “By using a cloud system, your company’s sensitive data and information will be stored on third-party servers, and you will probably have very limited knowledge or control regarding this information” (para. 5). This becomes particularly important for cloud users who have a lot of extremely confidential data such as healthcare providers and credit card companies. It is a legal issue because if this data is not handled correctly or falls into the wrong hands, these companies will be held liable. According to Brady (2010), as a result of these privacy concerns, “lawyers are and will be challenged to provide competent advice that safeguards their client’s most important information” (Outsourcing and Ethical Concerns, para. 1).
2. The possibility of encountering unresponsive or unwilling cloud providers. Should the cloud provider become unresponsive or unwilling to continue providing service, cloud users will be left in a huge dilemma (White, 2010). This is especially difficult for small businesses that use the cloud. According to White (2010), “their small size and limited resources makes these companies much more vulnerable to some of the risks associated with cloud use…Many small companies are not able to mobilize their lawyers effectively in this way, and thus they may not be able to quickly cure or mitigate such nonperformance by the provider” (para. 6). Therefore, it is important that before companies or people begin using cloud computing, they spend time researching and selecting a cloud provider who is reputable and reliable (Brady, 2010).
3. Not being able to monitor or control data movement. Since third party providers are the ones actually handling the data, cloud users often do not have the ability to monitor or control where the data is stored and when or how it is moved. According to Brady (2010): “There must be protocols in place to ensure that one company’s data is not commingled with data from another company. Moreover, there must be systems in place to prevent data being improperly accessed or removed by an unauthorized user. For purposes of litigation, location of data might be a critical factor in determining what law applies to the dispute or how easy it is to access the information” (What are the risks?, para. 2).