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Solutions Review\u2019s Contributed Content Series<\/u><\/a> is a collection of contributed articles written by thought leaders in enterprise tech<\/span><\/a>. In this feature, Zerto<\/a>‘s Global Director of Technical Product Marketing Kevin Cole offers commentary on why retailers must use SaaS safely to protect the bottom line.<\/strong><\/i><\/span><\/p>\n However, there is a key limitation to the SaaS model that companies are not always aware of. Adopting Software as a Service can put retailers at risk of significant data loss, as most SaaS providers only offer basic data protection functionality and operate on a shared responsibility basis. Many companies assume SaaS providers will completely handle data protection, but this is not the case as SaaS providers can usually provide basic data security but lack comprehensive plans and strategies. Retailers using SaaS often find that their data, which they assumed to be safeguarded and recoverable, was not kept as secure as they thought.<\/p>\n The disconnect in expectations here is reasonable, given that one of the core aspects of the SaaS model is that the provider takes on the customer\u2019s technological responsibility and provides it to them as a service. But just because a cloud-based service is adopted, the responsibility for data protection is not automatically taken on by the provider.<\/p>\n This is why it is so important to closely consider the parameters of the shared responsibility model. While signing up with a SaaS provider usually means a range of key technology priorities will be addressed (such as physical security, the operating system, and other factors which should be listed in each Service Level Agreement), protection of users and data is rarely included and remains the responsibility of the customer. Unless specifically built into the contract upfront, viruses and malware, insider threats, and issues caused by human or configuration error are usually not covered by the SaaS provider. If this is not accounted for, a disaster recovery situation can lead to data loss for the company.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/solutionsreview.com\/backup-disaster-recovery\/files\/2023\/10\/insightjam_logo.jpg\"){kind=logo}
<\/a>The growth of the global Software as a Service (SaaS) market has been explosive, making it one of the technology industry\u2019s most impressive success stories in recent years. According to McKinsey, the global SaaS market is now valued at $3 trillion, and their estimations show it could increase to a whopping $10 trillion by 2030. The retail industry is one of the largest users of business-to-business technologies like SaaS. A plethora of critical retail software, including order and management fulfillment systems and communication tools, live in SaaS apps in the cloud.<\/p>\n\t\t\t![](\"https:\/\/solutionsreview.com\/backup-disaster-recovery\/files\/2021\/05\/21_BUDR_SB_BG_Blue_800.gif\" "\\"Data")
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Shared Responsibility in SaaS<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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