Cloud computing would be like storing your valuables in a convertible in the bad part of town. You'd wake up the next morning to find a nice slice in the roof and everything gone. What's this cloud thing you may ask? Simply put rather than have a computer program that runs on your own computer (things like spread sheets, word processing and the like) all of these would be stored on a central server including all of your personal info like passwords account numbers etc. The idea is to make very small computers that could run any number of programs or applications without having to take up hard disk space on the device you were using. Sounds great for smart phone users right? Except for several drawbacks like the fact that in order to have a secure system there must be multiple back ups. If the main servers were to be shut down by a power outage or natural disaster then it might take a day or two to recover your data. And although the place where the servers may reside is like Ft. Knox intercepting such info from the outside may be quite easy for a hacker. In fact listening to Kevin Mitnick just yesterday it would be easy for any hacker to breach such security. Kevin (a former hacker) now a computer security expert was asked by a South American country to check their early works on a cloud system that they had developed. He was easily able to break in and access the information.
After seeing what just happened to the IMF computers in the last few days it makes me wonder when they'll be able to hack a regular checking account. Then the thought occurred to me that maybe we are in the beginning of a global cyber war. Or maybe it's already started and we just didn't see it happening. That's open for debate. What better way to destroy a foe than to cut off his access to money. Will we have to return to some former cash and carry society to survive? When you think of it nothing in this society runs without a computer and our tech support is getting weaker and weaker the more complicated the systems get. Then there's Wall Street with their super computers. One glitch there could bring down an entire nation.
So I think I'll leave the clouds where they belong up in the sky.
9 comments:
Yup, Cloud = insecure.
MS Cloud = CuNim ;-)
Agree, totally. I want stuff on MY hard drive where I can get at it. Including my emails. All 10 years of them. Then I can lose it myself as the case may be but I do back up important stuff more regularly than in the past.
OK, you've changed my mind. I always thought cloud computing sounded like a good idea, since your own personal data would be safe if your own computer crashes or gets a virus.
But your post (and the former hacker who was quoted) has made me think twice. I'll just take my chances with my own computer.
I don't even like using google for Documents or their other programs.
the one thing I have on cloud is music I've downloaded from Amazon, because - sad but true - if it disappeared, I wouldn't care.
Amazon operates a big cloud serving many business users. I read a few months back it suffered a major hacking and breakdown, leaving some of those businesses unable to get at their data for a lengthy period. Not good.
Some see the cloud concept as just the thing for having off-site data storage. That way, if your home or businesses burns down, your data are safe. That makes sense, provided the cloud has redundant systems on separate sites.
The one big advantage I see in it as far as apps are concerned is that updates would be automatic and not slow you down every time you boot your PC and go on to the Net. Even there, though, cloud users generally prefer apps they can use on their own PC when they're not online.
Cloud, like pretty much everything, sounds neat until you realize it was designed by humans for use in a world flush with humans.
The internet kill switch nukes everything, I still have my tunes available to soundtrack the apocalypse.
I hate to tell you this BF but your emails aren't on your computer. They are neatly tucked in a sasktel server unless you made copies to your HD or archived them yourself.
SW Funny but I've not lost one piece of data on any of my computers even after one of the power modules crapped out some years back. Unless the hard drive totally melts down it's fairly cheap and easy to get thing up and running. And I'm no computer whiz either.
Randal we just can't wait to hear your selections for cyber end times. Does that come with a bottle of aspirin?
Trust me they are ON my computer. I have used Outlook since Day 1 and download every email I get. They are then automatically deleted from Sasktel. I only use webmail when I don't have my own computer with me.
My daughter thinks I should use Dropbox. I dunno.
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