Flawed cloud architectures and the rise of decentral alternatives

Abstract

The high degree of centralisation that characterises many cloud-based services raises a series of challenges in terms of (a) security, due to there being only a few points of failure or attack, (b) privacy, due to the users' lack of control over the collection and use of personal data, and (c) user autonomy, given that users increasingly depend on third parties services and infrastructures. After analysing the drawbacks of traditional cloud computing platforms, this article provides an overview of how civil society is progressively challenging the centralised cloud establishment by providing decentralised alternatives to cloud computing which could potentially help overcome these drawbacks.

From cryptocurrencies to cryptocourts: blockchain and the financialization of dispute resolution platforms

“…Legal sector investments into blockchain are often grounded within social imaginaries of decentralized and distributed governance using 'trustless' peer-to-peer systems that operate independently from third parties such as courts and regulators (De Filippi & Loveluck, 2016). In the context of understanding the judicialization of blockchain (Ortolani, 2019), an important imaginary begins with disrupting existing legal structures, problematizing existing approaches to online dispute resolution, and critiquing institutions of governance as oppressive.…”