With the recent Apple iCloud scandal, it is obvious that most people are afraid when they hear anything about cloud storage. Keeping data secure is very important and the truth is that it is also your responsibility to be sure that your data is always secure. It is not just the responsibility of the provider. With this in mind, here is what you need to remember.
General Tip: Avoid Storing The Sensitive Information
Crucial information has to be kept in a completely safe locations. What can be safer than your own properties, those that you have access to? If your cloud server is hacked, it is quite obvious that data would be compromised. If you do not have sensitive information on the cloud, you do not end up with problems when bad things happen.
Read User Agreements
There are so many that do not do this. If you do not know exactly what option to consider, read this agreement. It will be boring but it will highlight what the domain administrators offer and what the policy is in the event that something wrong happens.
Your Password Counts
This is advice that everyone offers but not many realize that over 90% of all passwords will be cracked in just a few seconds. It is a reality because people are not really careful. It is a bad idea to use a password you used anywhere else. Even when you use the best small Windows tablets of 2014, your service will be vulnerable when one password is identified. As an example, here is how to create a really secure password:
- Choose a random word. Let’s say “artifact”.
- Add a word for the service you add the password to: “artifactforgmail”.
- Add a number between words: “artifact3435forgmail”.
- Add special characters: “artifact3435for$#gmail”.
- Add uppercase: “Artifact3435for$#gmail”.
You can basically develop your own system to remember passwords and to make them secure. At the same time, you can always have the password written inside your home safe so nobody can get to it.
Data Encryption
Tech Surprise highlights that encryption is always the best possible way to protect data. This means that when you move your file to the cloud, you also use software to create passwords for the file. The password protected file is the one that is moved to the cloud. If you do not know how to encrypt, you can always archive the files that you upload with Rar or Zip and add a password.
Encrypted Cloud Services
Some of the cloud services offer local encryption and decryption besides the backup and storage. That means that the service provider will also take care of file encryption so that cloud storage is safe. This practically means that nobody will be able to get access to files, including server administrators and service providers.
Always think about the value of your data. The more value you have, the more protection has to be added! Two-step verifications are an option and that SMS code based system helps out a lot in keeping hackers away.