Cloud after Snowden: It’s getting stormy


Posted on March 31, 2014  /  1 Comments

Edward Snowden’s whistle-blowing about NSA’s widespread surveillance and eavesdropping is taking toll on American technology industry. A new survey, commissioned by NTT of Japan, reveals that 90% of ICT decision-makers are rethinking their attitudes to cloud computing and the global Internet.

Titled, “NSA Aftershocks: How Snowden has Changed IT Decision-Makers’ Approach to the Cloud” the study is based on a survey of 1,000 ICT decision-makers from France, Germany, Hong Kong, United Kingdom, and the USA. It highlights nine after-shocks from Snowden’s revelations, which are compelling companies to rethink how they use cloud computing:

  1. Almost nine in ten (88 percent) ICT decision-makers are changing their cloud buying behaviour, with over one in three (38 percent) amending their procurement conditions for cloud providers
  2. Only 5 percent of respondents believe location does not matter when it comes to storing company data
  3. More than three in ten (31 percent) ICT decision-makers are moving data to locations where the business knows it will be safe
  4. Around six in ten (62 percent) of those not currently using cloud feel the revelations have prevented them from moving their ICT into the cloud
  5. ICT decision-makers now prefer buying a cloud service which is located in their own region, especially EU respondents (97 percent) and US respondents (92 percent)
  6. Just over half (52 percent) are carrying out greater due diligence on cloud providers than ever before
  7. One in six (16 percent) is delaying or cancelling contracts with cloud service providers
  8. More than four fifths (84 percent) feel they need more training on data protection laws
  9. 82 percent of all ICT decision-makers globally agree with proposals by Angela Merkel for separating data networks

Download the full study from website of NTT Communications.

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