Security remains biggest hurdle in cloud storage adoption

Security is the number one concern amongst senior business executives when it comes to cloud data adoption, yet more than half of business-critical data is likely to reside there by 2019.

According to the findings of a new study released by Teradata, eight out of ten executives cite security as a concern when storing data in the cloud, but that has not stopped a huge rise in the amount of critical data being sent there.

Looking ahead to 2019, executives predict that over half of IT (56 percent), customer (53 percent), and financial data (51 percent) will reside in the cloud.

The study highlights that although businesses want to invest in cloud storage and many plan to do so over the next two years, there are real concerns about security of information and data breaches.

Teradata’s report also found that  security and lack of control are the top obstacles holding back storage of critical data in the cloud.  About 40 percent of respondents say general security is a risk, while 25 percent of respondents believe cloud data adoption will result in more security breaches. A quarter of those surveyed believe data cloud adoption will result in lack of control.

However, the study also found that cloud storage adoption will rise sharply in the next two years. Although 58 percent of data from organis ations surveyed already sits in the cloud today, usage of cloud will increase over the next two years, with three in ten companies globally predicting a significant increase of data in the cloud by 2019.

Teradata also saw that the telecoms sector is making the biggest commitment to the cloud, 48 percent of organisations surveyed anticipate a significant increase in their cloud storage use by 2019. Healthcare will move its customer data to the cloud, whilst utilities will prioritise IT and R&D data. 59 percent of respondents highlighted that the healthcare industry will move customer data to the cloud in the next two years.

Marc Clark, ‎director of cloud strategy and deployment, Teradata, said, “Our message to organisations around the world is that the cloud is actually one of the most secure means of virtual storage available. While our study finds widespread concerns, the fact is that cloud storage is growing rapidly, remains hugely cost-effective, and that there are ways to manage it securely.

“Cloud computing security processes should be designed to address the security controls that the cloud provider will incorporate, in order to maintain the data security, privacy and compliance with necessary regulations, as well as providing a business continuity and data backup plan.

“By identifying the barriers within the business that hinder further adoption, as well as where cloud storage is creating positive opportunities, we aim to provide reassurance that cloud storage is a safe and cost effective way to store company information.”