Are Online File Storage Services Secure?
Why you can rest easy with Internet backup
Offsite file storage is a popular option for computer owners and business operators for one primary reason: secure data protection. Most computer users have felt that moment of terror every time their computer freezes or crashes – imagine the feeling of facing computer theft or an unexpected, serious flood? Internet backup can’t protect your physical computer(s), but it can protect virtually all the data on it.
The file storage space on your computer is filled with a diverse array of programs and documents, including financial records, contact lists and other sensitive information. In this day and age of identity theft, it’s only logical to be wary of offsite Internet backup. Is online file storage – having all those files in different places – really secure?
The simple answer is yes.
As long as you’re with a reputable file storage provider, your Internet backup could not be safer. Even the file storage service technicians will not be able to look at your documents – everything is carefully encrypted (sometimes twice!) and you. If you request it, are the only one with the password to access it.
Here’s how it works: your Internet backup service will select a private encryption key code known only by you. You will be required to enter this key in order to access any of the data in file storage. Using a unique encryption key has a distinct advantage and disadvantage:
- The advantage – nobody, not even your Internet backup service’s servers, knows your private encryption key code, so the possibility of anyone hacking into your data is vastly minimized. There will not be entry into your file storage by anyone but you.
- The disadvantage – since your Internet backup service provider doesn’t know your private encryption key code, if you were ever to lose it, you could never retrieve it, and everything in file storage could be lost forever
File storage facilities are built to withstand power outages (they should have a generator or redundant power source), power surges, wild weather and break-ins. Security is tight! Internet backups should also, at best, be stored in two (or more) facilities. So, even if the unthinkable happens to one data centre – say, a natural disaster or terrorist attack – your file storage service will still have all of your files. This is what you’re paying for when you purchase Internet backup, after all.
As you review your file storage options, here are some basic security features to watch for:
- Minimum 128-bit SSL encryption (military grade) on Internet backup transfers
- Minimum 256-bit AES or Blowfish encryption on file storage data
- Your Internet backup should be stored in multiple, redundant file storage facilities
- Data centre (or data centres) for file storage should be as secure and state-of-the-art as the one you would use for web hosting
View our list of the Top Online Backup Providers