Storing Information on the Cloud
Information used to be stored in a manner that was easy to manage. They would have these giant computers that were large enough to hold terabytes of information (that is a lot!) that ranged from internal controls to customer’s profiles and user preferences. These servers were encrypted and made secure by the companies that ran them. They were also password secured and this way only authorized employees could access the data if they needed to. When they searched for easier network management, the answer was right in front of them: the Internet. With unlimited sconnectivity and always done at cheap prices, it represented a win-win for these companies.
By storing information on the Internet, it made their consumer’s data vulnerable. The problem is, these monolithic computers were safe and secure, while the Internet wasn’t nearly as secure. The Internet can be easily hacked into, while these massive computers and their networks had so many privacy and safety safeguards that the N.S.A. would have had trouble trying to break in. The fact is though, the consumer’s lost this battle. While it helped out the big shot companies by removing their burden of network management, it hurt the consumers by having their security decreased by a large amount, and put their information at risk. “Cloud Computing” is the term put to this in discrepant practice of putting all information on the web rather than the large personal databases.
This creates a big privacy issue for the customers though. Since these people on the Internet have no affiliation with the company who has asked them to store the data, who is to say they are going to take their job seriously and provide these users with adequate protection? Also, it isn’t like they are being paid a large sum of money to do so either, online data storage prices are dirt cheap and will remain that way, as space is virtually unlimited.
There isn’t much that can be done about these data infringements and the risk that these companies represent to you, but there are things you can do as an individual and an Internet user. Try and restrict the amount of sensitive information you give these companies. If they are going to treat it well, don’t give it to the at all! Also, try using an anonymous proxy that will encrypt and encode all of your data. While these companies will let your Internet safety go by the wayside, you can ensure anonymous browsing through a private proxy server.
Jeannine Says:
I don’t know much about computers, but from what I know, the Internet is a dangerous storage place. I’ve always heard that the safest place to store sensitive and personal data is on a personal machine, and with password protection and encryption technology. The Internet is almost completely unprotected and having our data stored there is an outrage and almost insulting. While it would seem FaceBook and MySpace would care about their users, I guess not enough to allot us some storage space on their massive servers. I hate to risk having my information public and unsecured online. Not only is it insulting, it is risky! These online servers are often not so safe, and like the article says, it’s not like these guys who encode the servers are getting paid that much, so their motivation and attachment levels are going to be pretty low. My Internet knowledgable friends showed me how useful an anonymous proxy can be, and how it can encrypt your data so that the cloud computers cant screw everything up for you.