What is true of companies considering a cloud computing business relationship?

Data protection laws also consider the jurisdiction where data is stored and processed, the category of data, and applicable international regulations - not only the provider and customer locations.

Confidentiality agreements in cloud computing can be comprehensive and legally binding across broad scope; they are not inherently limited.

Under data governance principles and the shared responsibility model, an organization that collects and stores customer data acts as its custodian - holding the data on behalf of the owners (customers) and bearing obligations for its protection and proper use. Cloud providers supply the infrastructure, but the using company remains responsible for data stewardship, compliance, and governance.

Cloud providers are not absolved of all data security responsibilities - both parties share defined obligations under the shared responsibility model.

Cloud providers do not own customer data; data ownership remains with the customer or the end users whose data is being processed.