The days are long gone when we had to carry thumb drives or portable hard disks along as we live in a time where cloud-based storage is a reality. You can store your data online and access them at any place and at any time just with the help of an internet connection. Thanks to the cloud solutions these days, a great deal of convenience has bestowed upon us but there may be some downsides as well. After all, you are never sure who else could access the data, file, image etc. you upload onto the cloud. The good think however, there is always a way to keep those data safe from unauthorized access
Here are some practical tips to secure your cloud data –
1. Back Up Your Data Locally
Having a backup of your data locally is always a great step towards keeping it safe and away from risk. By having an electronic copy of your key data, you can freely use the cloud without any worries of losing data or your information being compromised ever. You should also manually back up the data in an external physical devise to maintain safety in case of data loss.
2. Never Store Sensitive Information
When it comes to the internet, you should always avoid storing your sensitive data as no privacy exists there in true sense. Even if you want to benefit from the cloud, you can still store away other data and files and avoid putting there your sensitive information. Even if you feel like storing those files and information like card details, home address etc, it’s better to first encrypt them before uploading.
3. Use Cloud Services That Offers Local Encryption
You should always make it a point to avail the cloud services that offer local encryption for your data. By doing this, you can easily get an extra layer of security for your data where access to the data would be provided through decryption only. Similarly, this will also keep your data safe from cloud providers and admins themselves. That’s why data should also be encrypted during the uploading and downloading stages as well.
4. Encrypt Your Data Before Taking It to The Cloud
There are many third-party tools you can use to encrypt your data in case you decide against trusting a cloud service to do this to your data. You can easily make use of a cloud-protection app and keep your files or data secure before uploading them to the cloud. You can still encrypt your files for extra assurance where you have availed an encrypted cloud service.
5. Check Your Online Behavior
Your online behavior might be one of top reasons to compromise the security of your cloud data. This mostly happens when you use public computers or connections and show casualness like opting to save the password, not logging out of the account and so on. Similarly, you should avoid connecting to open Wi-Fi hotspots in public places else this can give hackers the opportunity they need to breach your cloud defenses.
6. Keep Safe with Anti-Virus & Anti-Spy
Your cloud service may not always be at the fault and the computer you’re logging in your cloud could also jeopardize your safety. If that system is not safe and protected, there will always be risks of viruses and bugs creating penetration spots for hackers to access your cloud account. That’s why you should make effort to keep your system secure and minimize the risk from viruses and bugs.
7. Use a Strong Password
Using a strong password can give you a chance against hacking or cracking attempt. Apart from using a unique and strong password, you should also keep changing the password regularly and keep it separate for different accounts to minimize risks to your online accounts. Likewise, having a two-step verification may also help provide extra security to your cloud account.
8. Read the Terms of Service (TOS) of Cloud Provider
It’s important to read the Terms of Service (TOS) of your cloud provider and understand their security and privacy policies in details. If possible, read through the little details to find you in a better position in regard to their services. A good company will be one that also does Pardot form development together with offering cloud services.
