Why avoid free cloud services?

Plenty of employees use consumer cloud services (free ones) at work every day. They reach their documents instantly, send large files, collaborate. But is that the right approach? What risks come with using them outside a professional setting?

The various free cloud services

There are several kinds of free cloud application:

• cloud email (Gmail or Yahoo)
• note taking and online file editing (Evernote or Google Docs)
• file sharing and cloud storage (Dropbox)
• large file transfer sites (WeTransfer)
• and so on

These free services are easy to use, which is why a good many employees are tempted to bring them into their working life. They are, however, consumer products rather than professional ones. Using them without oversight can therefore expose a company to real risk.

What risks do free cloud services pose to a company?

When you use a free service, the confidential data you share is stored on someone else's servers. That raises several problems:

• The data you send can be intercepted if the transfer is not secured to a high enough standard. That data can then be sold to competitors or used against the company for malicious ends
• Security and confidentiality may fall short because of poor access rights management, weak passwords, hacking and so on
• These services are simple and very easy to reach: a stolen laptop becomes a doorway into the company's confidential documents
• Data is stored in the United States for the majority of consumer services
• Reversibility: it can sometimes be difficult to retrieve documents locally and to delete them permanently from the service

Free cloud services are very easy to access and aimed at the general public. They are not suited to professional use, because they call into question the security and confidentiality of a company's stored files. If your company wants to protect its data, it is better to choose a professional solution offering fine-grained administration and, above all, a high level of security. Professional cloud solutions also tend to offer far more storage space.