7. Hidden Aspects of a Cloud Computing Contract

Cloud service providers offer a contract to their customers. The contracts do not deviate much from one another. The cloud service provider prefers the contract to be executed as a click-through online. In a way the cloud service providers keep the contract standard without customization. There are two main reasons for the standard contract. First, the services are standardized and the customer has the full range of services to look at and decide on the services that they want. Second, with numerous customers it will be impossible to manage customized contracts that differ from one another. Review of the standard contract reveals that the Service Level Agreement (SLA) does not give the customer much recourse. Invariably the SLAs favor the service provider. There is a new trend among cloud service providers and customers to seek insurance to mitigate the risks. In this chapter we look at the many hidden aspects of a cloud contract and point out where clarity is needed. Cloud service providers have privileged users who have the potential to access customer data on the cloud. The standard contract does not specify how privileged users will be monitored. Also important to the customer is the ability to switch service providers and move data across providers easily. This requires the service provider to have the resources to support high speed data transfer in a standardized format. We will look at the provisions made in the contract for such a move.