Microsoft last week lost a potential European customer for its cloud-based Microsoft Office 365 product over concerns about the Patriot Act allowing U.S. government access to to private data. UK defense contractor BAE Systems said they’d changed plans on advice of their lawyers. Smart lawyers.

If we have to rely on lawyers for data security advice, we’re in real trouble.

Frankly I think the US Government and the Patriot Act would be the least of their problems.  If a defense contractor put their data on a public cloud service it would be an open invitation to Iran, North Korea, China, and others to try to steal it.

It boggles my mind that BAE even thought about putting […]