On Backups

Google Drive, Dropbox, and OneDrive are not backup systems. They are sync systems. There is a difference, and it matters.

When a file gets corrupted, deleted, or infected with malware, a sync service does its job and faithfully replicates that problem to every device connected to your account. The damage spreads. A backup system, by contrast, keeps older versions of your files intact and separate, so you can go back to a point before things went wrong.

The other mistake is keeping your only backup in the same physical location as your computer. A fire, a flood, or a theft takes both at once. Your backup needs to survive whatever takes out your original.

The approach that covers both risks: at least one copy offsite or in the cloud, and at least one copy you control locally. Neither one alone is enough.

And whichever backup system you use, make sure the data is encrypted. An unencrypted backup is just your private data sitting somewhere waiting to be read by whoever finds it.