115
trust is therefore central to cloud computing, and this section begins by
examining how ethics can promote the generation of trust, especially
through the establishment of codes of ethics—which would need to be
respected and enforced beyond the borders of country-based regulation
(Sect. 6.3.2.1). The section then considers the perspective of providers
regarding sustainability, and the extension of the discussion on “green”
computing to cloud computing (Sect. 6.3.2.2). It also explores issues pertaining to the increasing concentration of power and the emergence of
oligopolies in the cloud computing industry (Sect. 6.3.2.3).
6.3.2.1 Codes of Ethics for Cloud Computing: Promoting Trust
The accelerated velocity in cloud computing innovation makes it difficult
for cloud computing regulators to keep pace with updating standards and
guidance and for providers to ensure compliance while maintaining users’
trust. Indeed, while it may be debated that ‘certification, audits and a new
generation of contractual clauses and binding corporate rules can help
build a robust trust’ (EDPS 2015, p. 10), it may also be argued that ‘eliminating bureaucracy in data protection law, by minimising the requirements for unnecessary documentation to maximise room for more
responsible initiative by businesses’ supported by additional broader guidance would be a more useful future initiative within the sector (EDPS
2015, p. 10).
In the wake of this call for a more responsible implementation of good
practices—as opposed to a detailed menu of further regulations—it is
interesting to consider the work of Whitehouse et al. (2016), who highlight that further major shifts in the cloud computing landscape are likely
in the coming years and advocate heightened emphasis on ethics is necessary with respect to key stakeholders, namely providers and users. This,
they suggest, is particularly important if certain behaviours on the part of
these stakeholders are desirable into the future. They note that an ethics
sufficiently robust to be able to withstand the intensity of the sector and
capable of keeping pace with the inevitable developments in the sector is
needed but has not yet been established. This, they assert, will help to
generate increased trust on the part of users. The International Federation
for Information Processing (IFIP) comprises more than 50 different
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) global groups. One
of their key foci is the societal and ethical challenges of cloud computing
(Whitehouse et al. 2016). They assert that enhanced ethics offers many
6 ETHICS AND CLOUD COMPUTING
trust is therefore central to cloud computing, and this section begins by
examining how ethics can promote the generation of trust, especially
through the establishment of codes of ethics—which would need to be
respected and enforced beyond the borders of country-based regulation
(Sect. 6.3.2.1). The section then considers the perspective of providers
regarding sustainability, and the extension of the discussion on “green”
computing to cloud computing (Sect. 6.3.2.2). It also explores issues pertaining to the increasing concentration of power and the emergence of
oligopolies in the cloud computing industry (Sect. 6.3.2.3).
6.3.2.1 Codes of Ethics for Cloud Computing: Promoting Trust
The accelerated velocity in cloud computing innovation makes it difficult
for cloud computing regulators to keep pace with updating standards and
guidance and for providers to ensure compliance while maintaining users’
trust. Indeed, while it may be debated that ‘certification, audits and a new
generation of contractual clauses and binding corporate rules can help
build a robust trust’ (EDPS 2015, p. 10), it may also be argued that ‘eliminating bureaucracy in data protection law, by minimising the requirements for unnecessary documentation to maximise room for more
responsible initiative by businesses’ supported by additional broader guidance would be a more useful future initiative within the sector (EDPS
2015, p. 10).
In the wake of this call for a more responsible implementation of good
practices—as opposed to a detailed menu of further regulations—it is
interesting to consider the work of Whitehouse et al. (2016), who highlight that further major shifts in the cloud computing landscape are likely
in the coming years and advocate heightened emphasis on ethics is necessary with respect to key stakeholders, namely providers and users. This,
they suggest, is particularly important if certain behaviours on the part of
these stakeholders are desirable into the future. They note that an ethics
sufficiently robust to be able to withstand the intensity of the sector and
capable of keeping pace with the inevitable developments in the sector is
needed but has not yet been established. This, they assert, will help to
generate increased trust on the part of users. The International Federation
for Information Processing (IFIP) comprises more than 50 different
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) global groups. One
of their key foci is the societal and ethical challenges of cloud computing
(Whitehouse et al. 2016). They assert that enhanced ethics offers many
6 ETHICS AND CLOUD COMPUTING