Continuing concerns about US Internet surveillance regimes is said to be damaging the Cloud computing sector as businesses eschew US-owned providers. 
Under the terms of the Patriot Act, designed to improve American national security, the US government can demand access to data stored in Cloud systems owned by US companies, whether the data is located in the US or not. Such demands do not need to be communicated to the owner of the data.
UK businesses who prefer their information to be protected from such intrusion are now choosing to move to European-based Cloud providers. Survey results from the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) suggest that since the NSA monitoring system came to light, 10% of businesses outside the US had already cancelled Cloud projects with American providers. 56% of non-US businesses reported being “less likely” to use a US Cloud computing service of any kind.
This shift in attitudes means that American providers of Cloud services are set to lose between 10% and 20% of the market to their international counterparts.
If your business is concerned about data being accessed by a foreign government but would like to take advantage of the significant benefits of Cloud file storage, give the Broadband Cloud Solutions team a call today on 0141 585 6363. Our LiveDrive service uses UK-owned and hosted data centres, ensuring your data is not accessible under the terms of the Patriot Act.
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