And, says Mimecast, the results of its second cloud adoption survey shows that these security doubts are holding back the technology's mass adoption.
This year, however, researchers found that more IT departments are using cloud-based applications, with users reporting better security and lower costs.
The survey, which was carried out independently for the firm, found that levels of satisfaction among companies using cloud systems is high across the board.
Conversely, however, companies not yet using cloud services cite concerns around cost and security.
The survey found that, of those businesses using cloud services, 74% say that the cloud has alleviated internal resource pressures, and 72% report an improved end-user experience.
73%, meanwhile, claim to have managed to reduce their infrastructure costs, while 57% say that the cloud has resulted in improved security.
However, not everyone is convinced, as 74% of IT departments still believe that there is always a trade-off between cost and IT security and 62% say that storing data on servers outside of the business is always a risk.
Security fears are still a barrier, with three quarters (74%) of IT departments agreeing with the statement 'there is always a trade-off between cost and IT security'.
This, says Mimecast, suggests that many organizations feel cloud solutions are less secure than the more expensive, on-premise alternatives, simply due to their lesser cost.
Infosecurity notes that 62% of firms believe that storing data on servers outside of the business is a significant security risk.
Peter Bauer, Mimecast's co-founder and CEO, said it is great to see that cloud computing has now been embraced by the majority of organizations.
"The research shows [however] that there is a clear divide within the IT industry on the issue of cloud computing", he said.
"While those organizations that have embraced cloud services are clearly reaping the rewards, there are still a number who are put off by the 'loud myths’ around data security and the cost of replacing legacy IT", he added.
According to Bauer, it now up to cloud vendors to educate businesses and end users to ensure that these concerns do not overshadow the huge potential cost, security and performance benefits that cloud computing can bring.