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Is It Safe to Store Data in the Cloud?

Dave Miller with Online Cloud Security

Dave Miller – Tech Enthusiast & Security Expert – March 11th, 2022

is it safe to store data in the cloud

Having your files stored in the cloud makes your life so much easier. You can use any internet-connected phone, tablet, or computer to view and download files and photos. Cloud storage ensures you won’t lose your files even if you lose your phone or your computer crashes. Cloud storage is also essential for people who work from home and need to share files with colleagues. There are also many cloud storages services with free plans and several pricing options available.

 

Whether you want to sync files across your devices or don’t have enough space on your computer, cloud storage is a good option. An increasing number of cloud storage providers are entering the market, making things even more complicated. It is a common question among users: Is it safe to store data in the cloud? Throughout this article, we will discuss cloud storage security.

Table of Contents

Is It Safe to Store Data in the Cloud?

How safe is the cloud for storing data? How secure is your data? Those are questions that almost every user asks. Whenever you store data in the cloud, there is a natural concern about the security of your data. At the end of the day, your photos, videos, and files are hosted by servers that are not under your control. However, cloud storage data is generally secure since big companies use various security measures to protect it.

 

Your data saved on a cloud service provider may likely be safer than your data stored on your computer’s hard drive. Keep in mind that hackers can steal information stored on your own devices with malware and phishing emails. In this case, they may freeze your computer and demand huge amounts of money before releasing your files and data. Home computers and devices can’t be protected by stronger security measures than those used by large cloud service providers.

 

Cloud storage provides a broad range of security features, including data encryption, single sign-on, public key infrastructure, and identity access management. The data stored in the cloud is usually encrypted, and accessing the data is usually restricted to digital keys. Companies offering cloud storage services provide various measures for data protection. Find out what each one involves.

Cloud Storage has Extremely Limited Access

Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, and Dropbox are three of the most popular cloud services. The iCloud service, which Apple offers, also stores part of its data on Amazon and Google servers. All of these servers are located in secure data centers. The staff has limited access to the servers.

 

However, many other safeguards protect your images, movies, videos, documents, and other materials from prying eyes, such as hackers, and even physical harm from fires. If you’re worried about hard drives or SSDs failing, most cloud services keep copies of each file at different locations so that if the worst happens, you’ll have a backup in another location.

Protect Your Data with Encryption

Although accessing your data from any device has its advantages, it also opens the possibility of someone else accessing it. There is no perfect security system. Anyone with access to your data on cloud storage could misuse it at any time. To prevent unauthorized access to data, almost all cloud storage services offer some form of encryption.

 

Using this encryption method protects your data before it leaves your devices. Data can only be delivered to your cloud storage space after the encryption procedure has been completed. After arriving on your cloud provider’s servers, the data is encrypted at rest. Cloud storage providers cannot decrypt your files or see their contents.

Password Recovery Options

In the event that the user forgets his or her password, the data is lost forever. Therefore, they have policies and procedures for recovering lost passwords. You must read its terms no matter how well-known a cloud storage service is. How cloud storage works, where your data is stored, and how data is gathered about you can give you confidence.

Regular Security Updates

Another reason why it is very safe to store your data in the cloud or on a cloud storage application like Dropbox or Google Cloud is that they have servers that are responsible for securing the data stored on the cloud. This means that you won’t be concerned about missing updates. Most cloud service providers regularly upgrade security measures.

Use of AI facilities

It is difficult to find qualified security personnel to protect data. Cloud providers also use artificial intelligence to help protect data rather than using humans to handle security investigations. Built-in algorithms scan for and identify potential security flaws using these tools.

How Cloud Storage Apps Protect Your Data from Outages

What if there are hardware failures or power outages? Even if a natural disaster or large-scale outage disrupts your cloud provider, you can access your data. Many of the biggest cloud providers employ redundancy. They probably duplicate your data many times and store it in multiple storage facilities. If one server fails, you can still access your files on a backup server.

Set up Two-Factor Authentication for Cloud Security

To secure your account, most cloud storage providers allow for two-factor authentication. Cloud storage accounts require both a password and a one-time verification code, which is sent to your phone or email inbox. Thus, even if an attacker cracks the password, they will not have easy access to the account. Usually, when you create a cloud storage account, two-factor authentication is disabled by default. However, you must enable it to further protect your data.

Use a Firewall

The cloud keeps data safe behind firewalls. As a result, hackers are less likely to be able to introduce malware or viruses with these firewalls.

Ensure Extra Security with Your Data in the Cloud

Also, cloud storage providers hire third-party security firms to perform regular assessments of their servers and software to protect them from cybercriminals, hackers, and the latest malware and viruses. Our data is more likely to be protected from hackers with external testing thanks to the protective measures of our cloud provider.

How Can You Keep Your Data in the Cloud More Secure?

  • Delete unneeded files. Remove any files that have already been deleted.
  • Review your file and folder shares. Be sure to monitor the contents every time you share.
  • Choose a strong password. Security passwords are vulnerable to hacking. This does not mean that passwords aren’t secure. Even though passwords aren’t inherently unsafe, they are vulnerable to dictionary and brute-force attacks.
  • Do not share passwords. Don’t let anyone have your password, even if they claim to be technical support. When you speak with a legitimate technical support specialist, they’ll ask for just a few pieces of identifying information from you, but they won’t ask for your password. Never share your passwords with anyone. The hacker establishes trust with end-users so that they are willing to hand over information.
  • Two-factor authentication is essential. You can secure your cloud information by using two-factor authentication. Logging into a cloud-based service requires a password and a time-sensitive randomly generated OTP.
  • Turn on Account Alerts. Ensure you enable alerts from cloud storage providers regarding critical events, like new sign-ins, so that you’re informed of them.
  • Disconnect any old devices that remain on your network. If you change jobs or get a new phone and get a new laptop, be sure to disconnect and deactivate the old ones correctly so that the new owners don’t get access to your old data.
  • Turn on Account Recovery. Account recovery options can typically be found in the security settings or account settings. It is important to ensure that they are current. When you have account access security questions, you should make sure they are difficult for someone to figure out.
  • Always sign out when not in use. It is important to sign out of your account to prevent others from seeing your files, especially if you are using a shared computer.
  • Use third-party apps with caution. Third-party apps can be a very easy way for hackers to access your storage. Therefore, you need to regularly check whether third-party apps have access to your cloud storage and delete any that aren’t in use.

Is Cloud Storage the Right Choice for You?

Cloud storage is becoming increasingly popular for many different reasons. Perhaps the most important one is accessibility. You have to physically access the device to open a file in a typical data storage system. Nevertheless, you can access the file anywhere if stored in the cloud. The only requirement is that you have Internet access and a computer.

 

Furthermore, multiple people can work on the same data simultaneously. Another advantage is the simplicity of managing data and the lack of risk of data loss if your computer is damaged or stolen. Cloud storage assures you that data is well-managed and protected.

Bottom Line

Is it safe to store data in the cloud? No system is completely safe; anyone with a password can access data and abuse it at any time. However, cloud infrastructure and online storage in the cloud is close to being secure. The data in the cloud is secure, but some steps must be taken to ensure the system is running smoothly. If used properly as it should be, cloud storage is relatively safer than local storage.

 

The difference between a secure cloud storage platform and a non-secure one should now be apparent to you. If you choose a provider that offers the majority of the above capabilities, you will be able to experience cloud storage benefits without compromising your day-to-day operations.

**Onlinecloudsecurity.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a way for websites to earn advertising revenues by advertising and linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. As an Amazon Associate we earn affiliate commissions from qualifying purchases.**

Dave Miller with Online Cloud Security

Dave Miller

IT Consultant at Online Cloud Security

Dave Miller is an IT Consultant for Online Cloud Security and has over 7 years of experience in the Information Technology space. He also specializes in repairing laptops & computers. In his spare time, he loves to talk about new technologies and hosts monthly IT and Cyber Security meetings in the Houston area.

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About Online Cloud Security:

Online Cloud Security is here to recommend you the most secure devices, from laptops to smartphones, we only want to provide you with products that we have tested and used ourselves for online security. Every product that we recommend is heavily inspected and tested for security against hackers, viruses, malware, and any other intruders that may want to steal your information. 

Recent Posts:

Online Cloud Security Logo (500x500px)

About Online Cloud Security

Online Cloud Security is here to recommend you the most secure devices, from laptops to smartphones, we only want to provide you with products that we have tested and used ourselves for online security. Every product that we recommend is heavily inspected and tested for security against hackers, viruses, malware, and any other intruders that may want to steal your information. 

Recent Posts: