Dropbox

As I've mentioned previously, I do use Dropbox often, and appreciate it's convenience and utility. Although I don't store sensitive data there (such as passwords), I didn't realize that Dropbox encrypts my data once it's there. Read the following last two paragraphs. While, in theory, it's secure, there are a few people at Dropbox that can dis-encrypt your data and have access to everything you've stored there. After reading this, I'm glad I don't store passwords, or any sensitive data there. Keep this in mind for anything you might chose to store in the cloud. They say this is necessary in order to comply with a court order, should one occur. Now, if they didn't have this ability, would they have to write and develop a new program to do so, similar to the case with Apple and the FBI? Does a company have to develop something they don't have in order to satisfy a government request?  Jim Hamm

Dropbox does take the extra step of encrypting user files with SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) and AES-256 bit encryption, once they've been stashed on the cloud server. That gives you the assurance that if Evil Hackers were able to break into Dropbox, they wouldn't be able to read your scrambled files. But the caveat is that Dropbox itself has the decryption keys needed to unscramble the files. This quote from the Dropbox security FAQ explains why: "We do have a small number of employees who must be able to access user data for the reasons stated in our privacy policy (e.g., when legally required to do so). But that's the rare exception, not the rule. We have strict policy and technical access controls that prohibit employee access. In addition, we employ a number of physical, technical, and heuristic security measures."