An expected slowdown in plans for cloud deployment due to leaksabout the U.S. National Security Agency's surveillance practicesdid not come to pass, but the leaks have driven changes in serviceprovider security policies, says an article at Computerworld.

The article, written by Jaikumar Vijayan, notes that when formercontractor Edward Snowden first leaked details of the NSA program,"industry analysts had expected that the revelations would put asevere crimp on plans for cloud deployment." One analysis, thestory says, said U.S. cloud providers could lose 10% to 20% of theforeign market to overseas competitors — up to $35 billion inpotential sales — through 2016.

"Six months later, the impact appears to be less severe thanexpected," says the article. It adds, "The business benefits ofusing cloud-based services continue to supersede enterprise fearsof government snooping."

The article notes, though, that the leaks have prompted "somelong overdue changes" in cloud data security and protection.

"Analysts say IT security officials are looking at several keyareas, such as data encryption, key management and data ownership,regionalization, and the need for increased governmenttransparency, to improve cloud security," according to thearticle.

See the full story at Computerworld.