Literature Review Essay: Cloud Computing Privacy and Security Issues

This essay conducts a comprehensive literature review on the privacy and security issues inherent in cloud computing. It begins by defining cloud computing and its benefits, highlighting the paradigm shift from local storage to internet-based data management. The essay then delves into the core concerns of privacy and security, discussing data proliferation, lack of standardization, and ethical dilemmas. It examines the impact of cloud computing on various facets, including ethical, social, professional, and legal aspects. The ethical issues are explored through Kantianism and Consequentialism, while social issues are addressed concerning consumer trust and data sharing. Professional issues are discussed, referencing UK BCS standards and the legal landscape including acts like the Computer Misuse Act and Data Protection Act. The essay concludes by emphasizing the importance of proactive measures by cloud providers and the need for responsible data management to ensure consumer trust and the continued evolution of cloud computing services. The importance of ensuring that privacy and security are not illegitimately negotiated is also highlighted.

Running head: Cloud Computing
Privacy and Security issues in Cloud Computing

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Contents
Literature Review Essay.............................................................................................................2
References...................................................................................................................................7

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Literature Review Essay: Investigation on the Privacy and Security
issues in Cloud Computing
Cloud computing is an advanced information techniques to store anything at anywhere,
just like keeping everything in the cloud. It is a paradigm of information technology to
retain data over the internet rather than hard drive of a computer (Mell and Grance, 2011).
In other words, a term cloud computing came by the concept of accessing anything in an
application of "the cloud" without any requisites to be made by user to store in any
specified place to expand access to an information (Armbrust et.al. 2010).
The services of cloud computing provides several glance of computing. These glances
include aiding to lower down costs of any large capital expenses on upgrading hardware,
ease to cope with any future requirement, soothes an efficiency of business affairs, create
an innovative and improved project in IT sector and so on. Eventually it a latest entry
efficient technology that attracts multiple numbers of cloud service providers and it is
truly connate as real game changer for technology sector (Qian, Luo and Guo, 2009).
The important link to cloud computing is a subject of privacy and security concerns. At
the widest level, privacy termed as a most crucial human right that comprehends the right
to isolation. In the context of marketable view, privacy demands the shield for the
consumer of cloud computing. For every organisation, privacy brings the applicability of
various legislation, governmental strategies, and ethics to maintain privacy on individual’s
data.
It is very significant requirement to consider any risk or threat to privacy in the cloud
computing. Vital steps requisite to protect privacy threat include managing all minute
information of a consumer by way of gathering, relocating, handling, allocating or storing.
Nevertheless, privacy is a core element to protect every individual social network as it
may cause severe attack on their secrecy.
The issue is data proliferation and inadequate data flow in Trans-border- data
proliferation is an inbuilt feature of cloud computing where issue arise in a case when an
application of cloud computing unable to control multiple data centres of owners ((Chen

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and Zhao 2012). Trans-border data flow entails a difficulty in assessing a cloud based
environments among multiple users at one time.
Just as privacy, a security is another vital aspect in the perimeter of cloud computing. A
perimeter of security establishes assurance limit within any individual’s control resources
are figured and subtle data is kept and handled (Ren and Wang, 2012). Nevertheless,
security is treated as a grave barrier in the success of cloud computing.
The main issue in concern of security in cloud computing is that lack of Standardization.
There is no proper standardisation among communication between user and within cloud
computing sources. Such lack in standardization establishes difficult grounds for best
security practices.
Another facet of cloud computing affected mainly in four main segments of issues that are
divided as following
Ethical Issues
The ethical issues are inspired by Kantianism theory and Consequentialism theory. Both
the theories focus on the general perspective of individual ethical values. According to
Kantianism theory, an action does not depend on the consequences of the action of
rightness or wrongness but depends on an individual will that whether he shall fulfil his
duty or not. While, the Consequentialism theory deals with a consequences of actions
whose outcome of an action is right for the benefits of a public. For example, the
stakeholder like cloud service providers entitled to have a rightful access of their
consumer’s personal details but they are also burdened by the allegation on the matter of
compromising their consumer’s personal details. Thus, there’s always a possibility in a
risk of security and privacy in a conditions such as data theft, leakage of secured data and
loss of user’s trust in cloud computing stakeholders (Yang, and Tate, 2012).
Social Issues
.When one completely put a trust and reliability on the cloud services creates a social
issue regard to privacy and security concerns. Other problem highlights when a consumer
of cloud services shared his data with stakeholders of cloud. Consequently a consumer

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suffers outages for non-technical reasons such as issue on target of regulatory actions
(Dlodlo, 2011). These situations create social issues due to reckless behaviour of
stakeholders of a cloud. The clouds services are considered as a big threat on security
concern as it creates complicated and distributed networking services. It also creates risk
factor on reliability of cloud services as it retains concealed data of consumer.
Professional Issues
Every organization is liable to follow a basic standards or norms to protect ambit of
individual’s privacy and security. As per text of Gartner, a proper investigation should be
conduct in cloud computing (Brodkin, 2008). As per UK BCS, the professional issues of
cloud computing deals mainly with four codes of conduct
 Public interest- a public interest lies mainly in subject of health, privacy, security and
public welfare. It emphasised to support certain factor like recognizing legitimate
rights of third parties. Its aim to evade discrimination of sex, age, caste, creed, colour
etc.
 Professional competence and integrity-It includes upgrading of self-knowledge and
skills. It enhances understanding over legislation of information technology in order to
implement professional responsibilities, respect and avoiding any malicious action of
any unethical activities like bribery.
 Duty to relevant authority- a professional duty includes performance of responsibility
with due care and diligence, avoiding of any conflict of interest, acceptance of
responsibility, non-disclosure of any credential information to a third party and
avoidance of misrepresentation to products, system and cloud services.
 Duty to the profession- duty of the profession includes acceptance of personal duty,
upholding of the professional value, improving professional standards by participation,
an act with integrity, respect to professional relationships, informing members of
chartered institute about conviction of criminal offence like bankruptcy or
disqualification of a company director and lastly one must support or encourage
colleagues in the development of professional ethics.

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Legal issues
Several Legislations supports a privacy and security concern in United Kingdom (Millard,
2013). These are
 Computer Misuse Act (1990) is an act framed to prohibit or deter criminal access of
computer systems.
 Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) is a law provide the right to right to use
information from the UK government..
 Copyright, Designs and Patents Act (1988) an act provides protection to the sectors
like literature, drama, music and art.
 Public Interest Disclosure Act (1998) safeguard whistle-blowers from negative
treatment given by their own company.
 The Human Rights Act (1998) an act includes the safeguard of privacy and security
concerns of every individual.
 The Data Protection Act (1998) is the most distinguished legislation whose object is
to safeguard the peculiar data of every individual in United Kingdom. (Svantesson and
Clarke, 2010).
 The Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations (E-
Privacy Regulation) provide particular right of privacy in regard to public access of
mobile networks over the internet (Riach, 2007).
 Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (2000) - an act primarily objects is to
control, regulate and monitor any inception of online communication (Taylor et. al.,
2010).
In conclusion, the investigation in cloud computing on a privacy and security concerns
deals primarily with an obligation on Cloud providers and cloud computing organization
to put every endeavour to protect the issues of privacy and security of every individual’s

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personal data. In precise, it is vital requisite to adopt an appropriate cloud computing
systems that aim to ensure user that privacy and security shall not be illegitimately
negotiated.
A need of responsible management of individual’s data must be a key factor to create the
faith in the consumer of cloud amenities. Such responsibility can be enhanced by
implementing a several policies in favour of consumer.
Undoubtedly, cloud computing deals with many advantages to scale any rapid expansion
in data protection but still requires spectator over its implication of services in reference of
privacy and security concerns.

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References
Armbrust, M., Fox, A., Griffith, R., Joseph, A.D., Katz, R., Rabkin, A., and Zaharia, M.,
2010. A view of cloud computing. Communications of the ACM, 53(4), pp.50-58.
Brodkin J, 2008, ‘Gartner: Seven cloud-computing security risks’, Infoworld, viewed 31
October 2017, from https://www.infoworld.com/article/2652198/security/gartner--seven-
cloud-computing-security-risks.html?page=2
Chen, D. and Zhao, H., 2012, March. Data security and privacy protection issues in cloud
computing. In Computer Science and Electronics Engineering (ICCSEE), 2012
International Conference on (Vol. 1, pp. 647-651). IEEE.
Mell, P. and Grance, T., 2011. The NIST definition of cloud computing.
Millard, C.J. ed., 2013. Cloud computing law. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Qian, L., Luo, Z., Du, Y. and Guo, L., 2009. Cloud computing: An overview. Cloud
computing, pp.626-631.
Ren, K., and Wang, Q., 2012. Security challenges for the public cloud. IEEE Internet
Computing, 16(1), pp.69-73.
Riach, E., 2007. The Privacy and Electronic Communications Directive. NEW LAW
JOURNAL, 1(7071), pp.379-380.
Svantesson, D. and Clarke, R., 2010. Privacy and consumer risks in cloud
computing. Computer law & security review, 26(4), pp.391-397.
Taylor, M., Haggerty, J., Gresty, D. and Hegarty, R., 2010. Digital evidence in cloud
computing systems. Computer Law & Security Review, 26(3), pp.304-308.

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Dlodlo, N., 2011. Legal, privacy, security, access and regulatory issues in cloud
computing. In Proceedings of the European Conference on Information Management &
Evaluation (pp. 161-168).
Yang, H. and Tate, M., 2012. A descriptive literature review and classification of cloud
computing research. CAIS, 31, p.2.