Enterprises enticed by cloud computing but worry about security

Enterprises that are looking to implement the benefits of cloud computing into their businesses want to be sure the forecast is clear of Internet security threats that could harm their network, drain IT resources, steal proprietary data and taint their corporate reputation.

A Trend Micro survey of nearly 200 IT decision-makers and CIOs who were non-Trend Micro customers found that nine in ten respondents (89 percent) look for in-the-cloud protection in an IT security solution. For some, cloud security isn’t even an option: Almost 40 percent of them would only consider security solutions that include in-the-cloud threat intelligence.

Security, or lack thereof, can make or break a cloud computing choice. According to the survey, 61 percent of respondents said they are holding off on cloud computing solutions until they can be reasonably sure that there are no significant security risks to their networks as a result.

A smaller group – 27 percent – said that security concerns might cause them to take a second look but the benefits of cloud computing outweigh security issues, and it won’t cause them to delay or cancel plans to implement a new cloud computing solution.