That's the title of my Free Press article for this week. Cloud computing seems to be a popular topic, so thought it was worth posting here. This article talks about the privacy issues of cloud computing from the view of a recent report by the World Privacy Forum.
From the article:
The forum report’s clear underlying message is that users must be diligent in understanding terms of service, how disclosing information to a cloud provider changes their privacy and confidentially rights in that information, and how remotely stored information may not have the legal protection it should have.
The forum also found many legal uncertainties that make it, “difficult to assess the status of information in the cloud as well as the privacy and confidentiality protections available to users.”
The entire article can be read on my blog, on the Canoe tech page, or on the Free Press site.
The concerns regarding cloud computing are serious and very real. There are still many important issues that have not been addressed by any court, and what little decisional law exists could be distinguished or construed narrowly or broadly.
The legal issues are not the only concerns. It can be dangerous to rely too heavily on these services. Take for example the case of http://ma.gnolia.com/. Their database crashed and the site is basically kaput. Everything people had stored there is now gone for good and without notice. You get what you pay for.