As we increasingly construct virtual identities and migrate our digital possessions into the cloud, it’s a worthwhile exercise to periodically reflect on these increasingly amorphous services. And my top two concerns are security and dependability.
On the security front, my guiding principle is an assumption that just about any host can and will be hacked. Which is why we turn to encryption for additional layers of defense. Unfortunately, some companies offer insufficient protection or overstate their capabilities. For example, it now appears that cloud file storage and sharing provider Dropbox embodies both. Whereas the company originally claimed user files were encrypted in such a way that even employees couldn’t access the data, it turns out encryption is handled on Dropbox servers and they maintain the encryption keys. Meaning, yes, employees can and have accessed user data… leading to a FTC complaint. Additionally, a recent service update inadvertently left all Dropbox accounts without password protection for about 4 hours – a startling development. Is Dropbox unique in their shortcomings? Probably not. However, given the ways in which these situations developed and were communicated, I’d think its customers would take this opportunity to reevaluate the ways in which they use Dropbox and explore potential alternatives.
In regards to dependability, if a service is often inaccessible it may not meet one’s needs (as I hear from disgruntled Tumblr bloggers). And, of course, the pinnacle of instability is a shuttered service. I watched with amazement as Yahoo killed the world’s largest photo sharing site… and it looks as if even Apple is prepared to follow in their footsteps when iCloud supplants MobileMe. Each and every web-based photo Gallery will be retired come June 30, 2012. Most folks will have local copies, via iPhoto or Aperture, so there’s little risk of data loss. Yet, that personal online destination and any links you may have shared will cease to exist.
So the takeaway is that our cloud services may not be as secure or dependable as we might hope. The onus is on us to temper our expectations and educate ourselves before deciding what to host, where.