Aim of this article: To provide advice on the impact, advantages, disadvantages, strategic and policy issues which arise from the emergence of Cloud Computing.

During the past few years major changes have evolved in the way users want to access their data files. Users want the convenience of accessing their files over the internet from a variety of locations and using multiple devices, e.g. accessing data from work, home and mobile and also using different devices e.g. iPads, mobile phones, etc. “The Cloud” has emerged as a method to meet this need for multiple ways to access data.

As with any innovation, there are advantages and disadvantages of “The Cloud”. Plus there are different types of cloud services which vary with regard to the benefits and disadvantages provided by each service.