Enabling Third Party Auditing on Cloud Platforms ensuring Data Integrity

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to take this chance for thanking my research facilitator, friends and family for support they provided and their belief in me as well as guidance they provided without which, I would have never been able to do this research.

DECLARATION

I, (Your name), would like to declare that I have read and understood the MSc Project Handbook and particularly the sections on referencing and plagiarism. I also declare that the Project Description Form deliverable is all my individual work without any aid and that this dissertation has not been submitted for any examination at academic as well as professional level previously. I have acknowledged all quotations from the published or unpublished works of other people. It is also representing my very own views and not essentially which are associated with university.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT2

DECLARATION3

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION6

Outline of the Study6

Background of the Study6

Rationale of the Research8

Problem Statement9

Significance of the Research9

Research Questions10

Aims and Objectives10

Ethical Considerations11

Time Scale12

Gantt chart for the Work Plan13

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW14

Overview of Cloud Computing and the Platform14

Service Levels of Cloud Computing16

Concept of Data Integrity18

Risks Associated with Cloud Computing19

Threats Associated with Cloud Computing22

Recent Breach History in Cloud Computing25

Requirements for Security in the Cloud26

Third Party Auditing in the Cloud27

Risks and Challenges in Third Party Auditing28

Actions for Reducing Challenges of the Third Party Auditing29

Recent Work in Third Party Auditing31

Conclusion for the Literature Review32

REFERENCES33

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

Outline of the Study

This research will provide inside about the issues related to data integrity within the cloud computing. The study focuses on the enabling of third party auditing on cloud platforms in order to ensure data integrity. The study comprises the following sections:

Chapter 1 is an introductory chapter presenting the background of this study, main goals, purpose of the study and research questions.

Chapter 2 is a relevant literature review in the study area, highlighting the previous research carried out in this field.

Chapter 3 presents an overview of research methodology chosen for this study. Research design, the data collection method, samples, sampling method, research instrument, validity, reliability, and the ethical concerns are presented in this chapter.

Chapter 4 presents the analysis of findings and discussion of the detailed study.

Chapter 5 concludes the dissertation, providing implications and useful recommendations for further research.

Background of the Study

Emerging trends in the field of cloud computing have started a new era for it. The advent of powerful processors at cheaper rates along with use of “software as a service (SaaS)” has been able to transform the data centres into a form of computing service at a high level [2]. In addition to this, the advancement in information technology has provided the opportunity to business sector for the access of high quality services for software as well as data that is only resided from remote data centres. Although it provides various benefits to its clients as a service platform, it also brings various design issues that prove to be a threat for data integrity and security [6].

This has influenced the level of safety ...