Context. Global software development (GSD) gained huge recognition in today’s business world. Most of the software companies day by day are striving hard to evolve globally where software is developed in the context of different environmental settings that are distanced on various factors like geography, timezone, culture and language. Coordination is the factor that plays one of the prominent roles in such a setting for effective teamwork and project success. Although numerous efforts has been done in this research area, there has been no proper evidence from industry about the impact of these coordination challenges on the overall quality of the software when being developed in a distributed setting. Objectives. The purpose of this study is to examine and identify the coordination challenges and risks faced in global software development projects that has a negative impact on the quality of software from practitioner’s perspective. It also identify the tools, methods, and techniques that are used in industry to overcome these challenges and maintain quality standards. Methods. The aims and objectives of our study are fulfilled by conducting survey among practitioners working in GSD projects all around the globe. Further, 10 interviews are conducted with practitioners working in different companies and geographical locations in order to gain a detailed understanding of the impact of identified coordination challenges on the quality of software in GSD projects. Results. A total of 50 survey responses are recorded, out of which 48 respondents specify that coordination challenges has a negative impact on software quality in GSD context. By the ratings given by the participants, we identified the challenges and risks that had a major impact. Mixed results are obtained during interviews where most of them prioritized coordination as a major problem in GSD projects. It also included that use of some tools, methods and processes help them in overcoming this issue. The quality attributes that are mostly affected due to the challenges in GSD projects are also identified. Conclusions. After the analysis of survey results, the coordination challenges and associated risks in GSD projects are identified. They were found to havemostly negative impact on software quality. After thematic analysis of interview results, we observed that though the impact of coordination challenges is negative, its extent of implication is moderate in most cases.

I en digitaliserad värld där data kan finnas lättillgänglig, delas samt lagras mellan olika aktörer, uppstår även hot där datan kan äventyras. I dagsläget finns det olika sätt att lagra data på där molnlösningar blivit en av de populäraste hos svenska företag, men det finns även andra tekniker som visar stor potential. Det som undersökts är potentiella effekter vid en användning av blockkedjor och potentiell integration med molnlösningar, samt hur detta kan förändra informationssäkerhetsaspekterna för svenska företag. Den forskning som genomförts rör hoten mot datalagring, dagens molntjänst-användning samt blockkedjeteknikens potential. Utförandet av detta möjliggjordes av semistrukturerade intervjuer för att få en inblick i organisationens dagliga arbete samt tankar och resonemang kring teknikerna. Vidare användes även litteraturkällor för att se hur tidigare forskning har bedrivits inom ämnet. Författarna har kommit fram till att syfte och mål bestämmer teknikens användningsområde, potential samt att organisationer med hjälp av olika lager av tekniska lösningar kan stärka informationssäkerhet. Uppsatsen bidrar till informatikämnet genom att se på hur svenska organisationer ytterligare skulle kunna digitalisera sin verksamhet utifrån hur världen ser ut idag. / In a digitized world where data can be easily accessible, shared and stored between different actors, threats also arise where the data can be compromised. Currently, there are various ways to store data, with cloud solutions becoming one of the most popular with Swedish companies, but there are other technologies that show great potential. What has been investigated is the potential effects of the use of blockchains and potential integration with cloud solutions, and how this can change the information security aspects of Swedish companies. The research carried out concerns regarding the threats of data storage, today's cloud service use and the potential of blockchain technology. The execution of this was made possible by semi-structured interviews to gain an insight into the organization's daily work and thoughts and reasoning about the techniques. Furthermore, literature sources were used to see how previous research has been conducted within the subject. The authors have concluded that purpose determines the technology's area of use, potential, and that organizations can strengthen information security with the help of different layers of technical solutions. The essay contributes to informatics by looking at how Swedish organizations could further digitize their operations based on how the world looks today.

I en digitaliserad värld där data kan finnas lättillgänglig, delas samt lagras mellan olika aktörer, uppstår även hot där datan kan äventyras. I dagsläget finns det olika sätt att lagra data på där molnlösningar blivit en av de populäraste hos svenska företag, men det finns även andra tekniker som visar stor potential. Det som undersökts är potentiella effekter vid en användning av blockkedjor och potentiell integration med molnlösningar, samt hur detta kan förändra informationssäkerhetsaspekterna för svenska företag. Den forskning som genomförts rör hoten mot datalagring, dagens molntjänst-användning samt blockkedjeteknikens potential. Utförandet av detta möjliggjordes av semistrukturerade intervjuer för att få en inblick i organisationens dagliga arbete samt tankar och resonemang kring teknikerna. Vidare användes även litteraturkällor för att se hur tidigare forskning har bedrivits inom ämnet. Författarna har kommit fram till att syfte och mål bestämmer teknikens användningsområde, potential samt att organisationer med hjälp av olika lager av tekniska lösningar kan stärka informationssäkerhet. Uppsatsen bidrar till informatikämnet genom att se på hur svenska organisationer ytterligare skulle kunna digitalisera sin verksamhet utifrån hur världen ser ut idag. / In a digitized world where data can be easily accessible, shared and stored between different actors, threats also arise where the data can be compromised. Currently, there are various ways to store data, with cloud solutions becoming one of the most popular with Swedish companies, but there are other technologies that show great potential. What has been investigated is the potential effects of the use of blockchains and potential integration with cloud solutions, and how this can change the information security aspects of Swedish companies. The research carried out concerns regarding the threats of data storage, today's cloud service use and the potential of blockchain technology. The execution of this was made possible by semi-structured interviews to gain an insight into the organization's daily work and thoughts and reasoning about the techniques. Furthermore, literature sources were used to see how previous research has been conducted within the subject. The authors have concluded that purpose determines the technology's area of use, potential, and that organizations can strengthen information security with the help of different layers of technical solutions. The essay contributes to informatics by looking at how Swedish organizations could further digitize their operations based on how the world looks today.