Canadian SMBs still not sold on cloud computing: survey

Most Canadian SMBs aren’t using the cloud and a surprisingly high number of small businesses still aren’t investing in data security, a new study finds.

Only 14 per cent of SMBs are hosting their data in thecloud, accordingto a Primus Business Services survey of 453 small business owners andIT decision makers atCanadian firms with less than 500 employees.

Although half of companies surveyed are concerned about the security ofdata hosted in the cloud, 74 per cent of those expressingconcerns haveno secure off-site storage for their critical business data and 72 percent don’t monitor or manage their data on a 24/7 basis.

Investment in data security is also a low priority, with 60 per cent ofSMBs surveyed saying they spend less than 10 per cent of their budgetson it. Two-thirds of SMBs say they have not worked with an IT securityfirm toaudit their data security practices.

Cloud ‘still an enigma’
Although SMBs are hesitant to adopt the cloud dueto security concerns, in time they’ll realize the cloud is apotentiallymore secure data storage option thantraditional on-site methods, saidMatt Stein, senior vice-president of network, technology and planningat Primus Canada in a news release on the study.

“Cloud computing is still a relative enigma but its inherent security,cost and most importantly, time management benefits, will imminentlybring it into the mainstream of Canadian business,” Stein said in therelease.

The figures in the Primus study mesh with data from ITBusiness.ca’s2011 State of the SMB Survey. Itfound that 56 per cent of respondentshad used no cloud technology within the preceding year and 35 per centcited security concerns as the main reason.

Would you recommend this article?

Share

Thanks for taking the time to let us know what you think of this article!
We'd love to hear your opinion about this or any other story you read in our publication.


Jim Love, Chief Content Officer, IT World Canada

Featured Download

Featured Story

How the CTO can Maintain Cloud Momentum Across the Enterprise

Embracing cloud is easy for some individuals. But embedding widespread cloud adoption at the enterprise level is...

Related Tech News

Get ITBusiness Delivered

Our experienced team of journalists brings you engaging content targeted to IT professionals and line-of-business executives delivered directly to your inbox.

Featured Tech Jobs