The cloud promises reduced costs and increased flexibility, but it also raises security concerns. Most IT professionals cite cloud security as a high priority, but a whopping 82 percent also trust it enough to use it. For more on how your peers view cloud security, check out our data-packed infographic. For CIOs and IT professionals, the potential of the cloud is clear: transforming IT from cost center to business engine. It promises the agility and scalability that tech dreams are made of. By leveraging the cloud, you can complete typical IT tasks in hours rather than weeks or months, allowing you to dedicate staff to innovation, not just maintaining systems and infrastructure. But reduced costs and increased flexibility don’t come without costs. Security is always a concern when sensitive data is involved, and that concern is heightened when it comes to cloud services that sit outside the corporate firewall. The numbers bear that out. U.S. companies are still feeling out their security footing when it comes to the cloud, but the trend is clear. Eighty-two percent of U.S. companies trust the cloud enough to use it in at least some deployments. However, 54 percent also list cloud security as a high priority (and another 32 percent cite it a middle priority). To help you get a better sense of how your peers view cloud security, CIO.com collected survey data from multiple sources. Take a look at our infographic below (or download the PDF) for more details on how U.S. companies are approaching the cloud. SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe Download the “How Secure Is the Cloud?” PDF Thor Olavsrud is a senior writer for CIO.com. Follow him @ThorOlavsrud. Dan Muse is executive editor of CIO.com. Follow him @DMuse. Related content feature Mastercard preps for the post-quantum cybersecurity threat A cryptographically relevant quantum computer will put everyday online transactions at risk. Mastercard is preparing for such an eventuality — today. By Poornima Apte Sep 22, 2023 6 mins CIO 100 Quantum Computing Data and Information Security feature 9 famous analytics and AI disasters Insights from data and machine learning algorithms can be invaluable, but mistakes can cost you reputation, revenue, or even lives. These high-profile analytics and AI blunders illustrate what can go wrong. By Thor Olavsrud Sep 22, 2023 13 mins Technology Industry Generative AI Machine Learning feature Top 15 data management platforms available today Data management platforms (DMPs) help organizations collect and manage data from a wide array of sources — and are becoming increasingly important for customer-centric sales and marketing campaigns. By Peter Wayner Sep 22, 2023 10 mins Marketing Software Data Management opinion Four questions for a casino InfoSec director By Beth Kormanik Sep 21, 2023 3 mins Media and Entertainment Industry Events Security Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe