An interdisciplinary approach to accountability for future internet service provision

Accountability is an important but complex notion that encompasses the obligation to act as a responsible steward of the personal information of others, to take responsibility for the protection and appropriate use of that information beyond mere legal requirements and to provide remediation. This notion is increasingly seen as key in easing business constraints in global environments and in helping overcome barriers to cloud service adoption. However, the relative complexity of the service provision chain makes it very challenging both legally and technically to provide accountability for the cloud. We propose a co-designed approach that encompasses legal and regulatory mechanisms and a range of technological enhancements that can provide the necessary basis for trust.