Let’s walk through those steps.
It helps us work and makes our lives easier.
Let’s talk about how you could mitigate that risk.
First, check the passwords you use for your cloud accounts.
Are you using the same ones for multiple services?
Are you relying on memory orsome other clever tricksto help you keep track of them?
Next,enable two factor authentication for all of themif you could.
Lie or give creative answers to those questions that only you know.
You don’t want someone getting into your storage the way intrudersgot into celebrity iCloud accounts earlier this month.
In Dropbox, for example, you might see all of themin your account security options.
(Alternatively, sign on to your Dropbox account, click your name and select “controls.”
Then tap the “Security” tab.)
If there are any applications listed that you no longer use or don’t recognize, remove them.
While you’re at it, see to it any old devices you use are cleaned out as well.
Check what access your provider gives itself to your data.
Review the security they claim to offer as well.
you’re able to do better.
That’s great unless you’re thinking about what may be lost if someone gets access to your accounts.
Take some time and go over what you store in each cloud storage account and identify it by risk.
It doesn’t take much for an overzealous company to shutter your account.
Another OneDrive userlost his entire Microsoft accountover some files stored in a private folder, accessible only to him.
There are plenty of services that do it well, likeSpideroakandTresorit.
Reminder: Cloud Storage Isnt Backup
Finally, a quick reminder:cloud storage is not backup.
Or more precisely, sync is not backup.
This is where we point out that cloud storage and sync is not the same as online backup.
You should trust the latter to keep your data safe, but not the former.
It’s important tokeep more than one backupof your data, including one that’s offsite.
Of course, keep your data backed up locally as well.
It doesn’t take a lot of effort to significantly improve your security.
Does this make you “hack-proof?”
Title photo made usingSlavoljub Pantelic(Shutterstock) andkzww(Shutterstock).
Additional photos byLulu Hoeller,Jeremy Keith,tubedogg,Ryan Somma, andSee-Ming Lee.
