Cloud computing is supposed to be done in a way that protects an agency's information, but Richard Falkenrath, a principal with the Chertoff Group, worries that the information could be in jeopardy. He is calling on Congress to prevent the courts from getting too far into the cloud computing decisions your agency makes.

Falkenrath spoke to The Federal Drive with Tom Temin and Emily Kopp Friday about how a recent decision in a German court may have relevance inside the Beltway.

"Just like in Europe, our own legal landscape is not entirely clarified on how cloud computing will work for the public, for large private enterprises or certainly for the government," he said.

Falkenrath wasn't suggesting that the U.S. should follow Germany in the way it protected copyrighted material; rather, his point concerned the different roles institutions play in government.

"My point is really about who decides and how is this process is adjudicated?" he said. "It strikes me that the courts are not particularly well suited to sort out the complexities of cloud computing, and it would really be better done by the executive branch with clear legislative backing. The is especially important when it comes to matters of security and the data integrity."