You Cannot Depend on Cloud

Having files in cloud had became a norm. I myself have DropBox, SugarSync, Google Drive and SkyDrive accounts. Every day I rely on them to get my files and synchronize them across my devices.

It gets even worse on tablets. Most of them, regardless whether they are Android/iOS/Windows, rely on cloud storage quite a bit. And why not? Cloud services have became so reliable from technical point of view that any data loss is highly improbable. Solution that requires no backup is finally there.

Unfortunately all those technical accomplishments are irrelevant. TechDirt brings quite a few stories of cloud data loss. And it is not because of technical glitch but because of false copyright claims.

Copyright holders have been quite active in auto-detecting infringing files with most (if not all) cloud providers. If they find unauthorized work they delete it and you get one strike. Few more illegal files later and you might find yourself with blocked account. All your files are gone.

Annoying thing about copyright claims is their “shoot first, ask questions later” approach. It does not matter whether file is really infringing. All that matters is that some automatic bot thinks it does. And than you need to jump through hoops proving your innocence. Even with best efforts and in case of obvious errors that can take days. While all your data is held hostage.

Cloud services are integral part of life these days and almost every computer has some data up in the sky. But do not think that your data is safe just because someone else takes care of it.

Cloud is not a replacement for good backup.