Mention “the cloud” and many who are not heavily involved in the preparation and creation of internet-based resources will turn their heads skyward. To be fair, cloud computing can be a difficult concept to grasp even for those who work within the IT industry because it is something we can’t see or even access in a physical space.
So what is cloud computing? Well, according the Wikipedia it is, “Internet-based computing, whereby shared resources, software and information are provided to computers and other devices on-demand, like electricity.” And Wiktionary defines it as “computing in which services and storage are provided over the Internet (or “cloud”).”
What does this mean for the average cloud consumer? It means lower overhead costs related to housing infrastructure onsite for meeting the demands and needs of customers. Not having to purchase and maintain hardware and software means a financial savings for the company, which in turn is able to be passed along to the consumers as money left in their own pockets.
SiteSecurityMonitor.com’s Jason Remillard took part in a Live Chat with Financial Post Executive Editor John Turley-Ewart on May 26, 2010 to answer questions about how “cloud computing is opening doors of opportunity for large and small companies alike.” He, with Prof. Henry Kim, took the time to outline the financial, environmental and time-saving benefits of using the cloud as well as some of the potential challenges which may arise from use of such a service.
Get the latest content on web security
in your inbox each week.
THE AUTHOR
