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Nearly half of IT professionals are concerned that the risks of cloud computing will outweigh the advantages that come with this growing IT service, according to a recent study by Information Systems Audit and Control Association.
Surveying 1,809 U.S. IT professionals who are all members of ISACA, the first annual ISACA IT Risk/Reward Barometer reported that more than 45 percent of respondents feel the risks of cloud computing outweigh the lower total cost of ownership, high return on investment, increased efficiency, and pay-as-you-go services. Thirty eight percent of respondents said the risks and benefits of cloud computing are equally balanced, while 17 percent said the benefits achieved with cloud computing outweigh the risks.
Despite the rapid growth and the benefits, IT professionals are hesitant about moving data into the cloud, according to the survey. Only 10 percent of respondents said their organizations plan to use cloud computing for mission critical IT services, and 26 percent stated they don’t plan to use it at all. Meanwhile, 15 percent said they plan to limit cloud computing to low-risk or non-mission-critical IT services and 18 percent have yet to formalize their cloud computing plans.
Robert Stroud, international vice president of ISACA, and vice president of IT service management and governance at the service management business unit of CA Inc., said in a statement it’s not surprising that IT professionals have concerns about risk versus reward trade-offs.
“But risk and value are two sides of the same coin,” he said. “If cloud computing is treated as a major governance initiative involving a broad set of stakeholders, it has the potential to yield benefits that can equal or outweigh the risks.“
