in business, practice and the third sector. Accounting systems were among the first software to become
available online where they (and their associated data) have been joined by a growing range of business ‘software as
a service’ (SaaS): from budgeting to spreadsheets. Using cloud-based infrastructure such as computers and
data storage can provide access to unlimited resources without the need for up-front investment, maintenance or
IT expertise. But the consumptionbased, pay-as-you-go approach is a mixed blessing.