No need for cloud-specific legislation, SIIA industry group says

The Software and Information Industry Association pressed for self-regulation instead of government rules in a white paper on cloud computing.

The industry group, which comprises about 500 software and information companies, said that policymakers should allow sector-specific bills — such as HIPAA, which governs the privacy and security health data — to apply to cloud computing. The policymakers should instead focus on promoting open standards for national and international privacy and data security, the group said. On the issue of security, a common concern for those wary of the centralized, off-site nature of cloud storage, the SIIA argues that cloud computing actually affords companies a higher level of data security. “By centralizing data storage and governance,” the group writes, “it can provide better security at a lower cost than trying to protect data in many dispersed locations.”