To understand the liabilities of using cloud computing, we need to first define what cloud computing is. We will also explain the different categories a cloud server, program, and network can fall under. There are different liabilites that particular caterogries are vulnerable to but the main liability is the mishandling of data.
Cloud computing is a plan that allows for convenient on demand network access that is shared by programmable resources such as servers, networks, or applications. To be considered one a cloud computing system, according to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) then it must have a required five characteristics. These are on-demand self service, broad network access, resource pooling, rapid elasticity, and measured service.
There are also three service models that fall into the cloud computing model and these are Software as a Service which allows the consumer to run applications through the cloud infrastructure though their control is limited over the configuration settings.
There is Platform as a Service which allows the consumer to use applications on the cloud infrastructure and while the consumer does not have control of the cloud network they do have that ability over the applications deployed.
The last one is the Infrastructure as Services, which gives the consumer the ability to access the networks, run operating systems, and run arbitrary software. The consumer still cannot control the cloud infrastructure but has control over the operating system.
There are five possible deployment models. The private cloud allows an organization that is made up of multiple businesses and can be operated, managed and owned by the organization. The community cloud is made for the use for a group of consumers that share a common concern such as policy. The public cloud allows for use of the general public and can be owned by even the government and only exists in a certain area, such as a school. The final cloud is a hybrid cloud that is made up of two or more of the previous models that work separately but allows for software to be transferred
from one cloud to another.
These are all the categories that a cloud computing server can fall under and classification is not the only liability.
There is no rule regulating how much security a cloud computing server or cloud computing software should have. This can lead to servers that don't have enough firewalls or employees working to make sure that your data is secure. Without adequate protection, data can easily be stolen by hackers and this can lead to disastrous consequences.
Another liability is that consumer data may not be properly stored by the server and data can end up in the wrong person's device. This is caused by mismanagement of data by the server.