What is the difference between cloud storage, cloud computing and a cloud account?¶

Cloud storage is one type of cloud service. Cloud computing is the wider use of provider-managed systems to store data, run software or perform processing. A cloud account is the identity and access arrangement through which a person or organisation uses those services.

Dave might store route-sheet.docx in a shared folder, use an online application to calculate delivery totals and sign in with one work account. The file storage, the remote processing and the account are related, but they are not the same thing.

Cloud storage keeps data¶

Cloud storage services hold files, photographs, backups or application data on systems managed by a provider. Users normally reach the material through an app, browser, synchronised folder or shared link.

The familiar folder on a laptop may therefore be only a local view of data also held by the provider. What cloud storage can show explains why the file and the account history may both matter.

Cloud computing performs work¶

Cloud computing includes storage but extends much further. A provider may supply virtual servers, databases, email systems, collaboration tools, hosted applications or automated processing.

For example, a small company might run its website on a cloud server, keep customer records in a hosted database and share documents through a separate storage service. Investigators may need to identify which service performed the relevant action rather than treating “the cloud” as one place.

The account controls access¶

A cloud account can identify a customer, organisation or user profile. It may hold billing details, recovery routes, roles, security settings and activity records. One customer account can contain many users, while one person may use several cloud accounts.

Account holder, authorised user and person performing a particular event are separate questions. A company may pay for the service, an administrator may create users and an employee may upload the relevant file.

Why the distinction matters¶

The words determine where evidence is likely to exist:

• a stored file may be held within the storage service;
• an application event may be logged by the computing platform;
• identity, login and recovery records may sit at account level;
• a local device may retain synchronised copies and authenticated sessions.

Start with the observed event and identify the service involved. This produces a more precise preservation or disclosure request than simply asking a provider for “all cloud data”.