Abstract
Despite the number of benefits cloud computing technology has to offer all organizations, both public and private, risk elements to consider still remain. Previously, these elements were used in evaluating if an organization would move towards the cloud or not. Today, it is no longer a question of if, but a question of when. The task of evaluating the benefits and risks is now part of the gap analysis used to determine which vendor to contract with. In the public sector, government entities face a different set of rules and higher scrutiny, when it comes to data security and budgeting. By evaluating what steps, early adopters have taken in their investigation, and analysis processes, prior to choosing a vendor, this article explores the essential information about cloud computing adoptions in public sectors, and provides some guidelines that governments can use in their decision making process when considering cloud services.