Cloud computing, even though a number of businesses have started using it recently, is still susceptible to a lot of myth when it comes to its value. Whether the myths revolve around cost savings or security concerns, they certainly delay innovation and distract from progress.

Here are a few myths about cloud computing you shouldn’t fall for:

The cloud is about money

The cloud can actually help you save money at times. There are a number of reasons why you should shift to the cloud. The most popular reason is agility. But do not assume you are going to save money if you don’t analyze the situation accurately.

What is and isn’t the cloud

Some vendors believe in cloud washing. This is their tendency to call things as “cloud” even when they aren’t. Cloud washing may be accidental at times because of confusion, but IT organizations tend to call a lot of things as “cloud” while trying to gain funding and meeting cloud strategies and demands.

The cloud can be used for anything

Unless you are saving money, moving legacy applications which do not change is not recommended. The cloud works best where flexibility is required and where the business can use and pay for what they need when they need it.

You only need one cloud vendor or strategy

Cloud computing is not comprised of just one particular thing, and cloud strategies must be based on reality. They should be based on aligning the goals of business with its potential benefits. A single strategy will only make sense if you use decision frameworks which allow and expect more than one answer.

Cloud is not as secure as on-premises

Cloud computing is often perceived as less secure because there have been few security breaches with public clouds. Most of them usually involve on-premises data centers. Do not assume that a cloud provider is not secure but they should prove their features and capabilities.

Cloud is not for mission critical use

Cloud computing does not have to be all or nothing. It can very easily be adopted in steps and for specific cases. Phased approaches can help ease the shift to the cloud platform. Even hybrid solutions can play an important role here.

A cloud is a data center

Most decisions related to the cloud are not just about closing down data centers and shifting everything to the cloud. Generally, data center outsourcing, modernization, and strategies are all related but should not be considered a part of the cloud. You should look forward to cloud decisions on a workload basis instead of going in for an all or nothing approach.

Migrating to the cloud means you get everything automatically

There are many unique characteristics and attributes of the cloud. A number of migrations are simple re-hosting which does not offer elasticity or scalability. Different types of migration offer different characteristics. The most common case usually is new applications. There are even some half steps which can prove to be beneficial, but they will obviously not provide the same results.