Four myths about cloud computing, dispelled
More and more businesses are seeing the efficacy that cloud computing can provide. Despite this, some myths persist about what it is and what it is not able to do. Here are a few of the most prominent, and why they're inaccurate.
It's nothing more than a buzzword.
This falsehood takes something that is actually true — people are talking about it more and more frequently these days — and confuses cause and effect. Cloud computing isn't important because it's a buzzword, it's a buzzword because it's important. And it's not a fad: research firm Gartner estimates that $788 billion will be spent on related services in the next four years, and consulting firm McKinsey expects the overall economic impact could soar as high as $6.2 trillion in the next twelve.
It's only for select businesses.
Even if you don't think you have, there's a very good chance you've used some sort of cloud-based software before. Email clients like Gmail and Yahoo employ them, as do digital libraries like Netflix and Kindle. In fact, some 95 percent of respondents in a recent Citrix survey have had some contact with them before, even though 54 percent didn't even realize it.
So chances are, you already have some familiarity with the principles behind it. Cloud consulting services can help explain how exactly your company can benefit.
It's somehow unsafe.
Companies that use cloud services actually tend to be safer than ones that don't. That's because the companies that provide them go to great lengths to create an infrastructure that will keep your data secure. These providers can afford to invest much more seriously in anti-hacker defense than your business can, because that's exactly what they're there for.
It can't be counted on.
Whenever a cloud service has a brief outage, it becomes major news. Not because it happens very often, mind you, but precisely because it does not. The technology is exponentially more reliable than keeping everything on a laptop, which can and will freeze or crash on a regular basis. That's to say nothing of external factors, like getting caught in the rain, having coffee spilled on them or having a curious pet decide that they're the ideal place for a nap. Ultimately, not only is investing in a cloud service the best way to keep your information safe from outsiders, it's the ideal method for keeping it accessible to insiders.
