Quantitative Risk Analysis for Mobile Cloud Computing: A Preliminary Approach and a Health Application Case Study

Abstract

Mobile cloud computing is presented as the next logical step in the adoption of cloud based systems. However, there are number of issues inherent in it that may limit its uptake. These issues are best understood as "risks" which span the whole structure and the life cycle of mobile clouds and could be as varied as security, operations, performance, and end-users behaviours. This paper is a first step in developing a quantitative risk model suitable for a dynamic mobile cloud environment. We also use this model to analyse a mobile cloud based health application and report our findings, which have implications for cloud computing as a whole.