Proper gov’t regulation will fix NSA spying & protect data [#LeWeb]

“We will remember June 2013 for a very long time”, Brad Garlinghouse, CEO of Hightail, told the LeWeb audience in Paris, France during a panel on the future of the cloud. Garlinghouse was referring to the revelations of the now infamous Edward Snowden.

“We’re in this weird place where people can access your data,” he continued in his explanation of what the consequences of the NSA leak have been and what effect they could have on cloud services in the United States. The question then is who is accessing your data?

Fellow panellist, Amazon CTO Werner Vogels, says that his company’s services haven’t been affected by the leak as Amazon is “building tech for customers to control and protect their data”.

For tech entrepreneur Mark Shuttleworth, Snowden might as well be “person” of the year. He argues that we are in an age where information is mostly in danger from insider forces such as law enforcement and that’s where the NSA fits in.

“Law enforcement is an important part of society as a whole but what has horribly gone wrong is the balance of due process on law enforcement,” says Shuttleworth.

According to the panellists, it is imperative, now more than ever, to protect personal and corporate data. This is especially so given that the companies meant to be protecting our data are also at risk. The more complex our smart devices get though, the bigger the demands in cloud computing are.

Shuttleworth seems to think that answer lies with governments willing to work with cloud operators to protect the countless data being generated.

“I think there is an opportunity for countries that understand that to map out a regulatory framework, which is seen as fair both by business operations, individuals, law enforcement and civil rights people, which can create an environment for operators with cloud infrastructure to house data in an environment that government goals are muted. So no one is stealing your stuff behind your back.”