I don’t think I am the only one who uses so called “free” cloud resources and tools as “backup solutions“. Using iCloud Photos and Google Photos seemed like great idea, until deleting from one deleted them from both. If you read the fine print, no one guarantees the safety of your data online.
Storing encrypted folders and files on iCloud, One Drive, Google Drive, Dropbox, etc. Foolproof, right? Until the day they get bought out, decide to end free storage, or just shut down.
Maybe @Leo’s favourite subject, backup, needs some caveats in terms of using free cloud storage.
The problem ranges far beyond “backup” per se: I registered a .Mac email and an alternate after it became Me.com which at the time cost money and which it transpired that I later couldn’t pay to maintain. Now, that Me.com alternate address is dead with no way to revive it, even after Apple verified to me through a senior technician that my main account is its sole owner, a perfect storm of SNAFU fuckery for something they now offer for free. That alternate has become my preferred handle, and now I can never have it through Apple because of their incompetence just because I didn’t have the money during a period they refused to offer free email, heedless punishment for taking them up on what at the time was their offer of free alternate addresses.
I don’t expect a free service to guaranty anything.
I use multiple free online storage resources. For example all my photos are backed up to Google photos and Amazon Prime photos. Flickr used to be part of my cloud photo backup option too.
I doubt both Amazon and Google would end their service at the same time.