Hey!
Thinking about using “The Cloud”?
Here are my top 10 questions to ask yourself or your provider before signing up.
There is nothing more dramatic than losing your data, I know, I’ve seen grown men get tearful at the thought of losing family photos. If you have ever lost your data you’ll know exactly what I mean when I say that having some reassurance on the other end of the telephone is a must.
So number 1 question is: If I lose my data or if I get into trouble can I call someone like a support desk? If the answer is anything other than “YES” then what are you going to do when something goes wrong? Are really any better off placing your data somewhere that might not help you when things go wrong?
Question number 2 is: Where is my data kept?
If the answer is anything other than the UK then you need to ask where is being kept and whether they subscribe to the Data Protection Act?
Question 3: If you are a Data Collector and you want to use The Cloud to store your data. According the Commissioners Office, in order to comply with the data protection act, you need to have a signed contract with the cloud provider.
Question 4: Once you upload the data to The Cloud, who owns that data, is it still yours?
Question 5: Once you upload your data to The Cloud, Who has access to that data?
Question 6: Will you do anything to with my data? Almost every cloud provider tracks the number of customers, the type of customer, the amount of storage and the amount of processor time for billing and marketing reasons. Be sure to find out if that information ends up anywhere else. Even though you may own the data, some vendors might use it to tailor advertising.
Question 7: What happens to my data should I move to another provider or cancel my account?
Question 8: Is there a limit on how much data I can upload or download?
Well there you have it 8 questions that you should ask yourself and your provider. I know that there ‘s only 8 questions and I said 10 but you got 8 good ones instead of 10 boring ones. Wasn’t that a pleasant surprise?
If you would like to find out more about the cloud just ask!