Living off the grid is one thing, but living without access to ‘the cloud’ is an entirely different matter.
Is it possible for Mac, iPhone, and iPad customers to use their favorite devices without being connected to ‘the cloud?‘ Not really. The cloud– online storage and applications and data– is ubiquitous. Love it or hate it, the cloud– including iCloud– is here to stay.
Trust, But Verify
Escaping ‘the cloud’ isn’t easy because it’s already become so pervasive; we rely on the cloud for almost everything today.
Credit card transactions? They’re handled in the cloud. Buying products online? That’s all cloud-based.
Got a Calendar and email and Contacts that sync up between your Apple iDevices? They’re all connected to the cloud (as in Apple’s version, iCloud).
There are a number of issues about the cloud that we need to be aware. First, the cloud is already here, already ubiquitous, and it’s not going away.
Second, the cloud is dangerous. How so? At a base level we store valuable information in ‘the cloud’ servers somewhere we know not, and we trust that all is well; until something blows up.
The cloud is loosely defined as internet-based computing where remote servers are networked and share data processing tasks, storage, and online access for services.
The cloud as we know it is hackable; if it’s not credit card number theft, it’s personal photos we’d rather not share with the world.
Yet, we’re stuck using the cloud simply to make use of modern technology, therefore, we need a strategy of ‘trust, but verify.’
Trust, but verify is a form of advice given which recommends that while a source of information might be considered reliable, one should perform additional research to verify that such information is accurate, or trustworthy.
It’s ironic that ‘trust, but verify‘ is from a Russian proverb (Russians are known for hacking systems worldwide; much like the NSA and the Chinese government; hmmmm).
How can we Mac, iPhone, and iPad users ‘trust, but verify’ our use of the cloud? If Apple, Google, credit card companies, and governments cannot secure their own data online, what can we do to avoid a similar fate?
Minimize.
That’s my solution until there’s a more viable solution that absolutely positively guarantees the safety and security of my online data storage and usage. It’s not an ‘off the grid’ strategy, but it uses a similar effect– fewer credit cards, fewer online purchases, fewer bank accounts, higher security options (can’t wait for Apple Pay), and whatever else keeps my online profile at a minimum.
I’m willing to trust, but I need more verification. Oh, and Google apps? They’re history.
Robinson says
Nice write-up, with good advice, but part of the premise is flawed! 🙂
1. “Is it possible for Mac, iPhone, and iPad customers to use their favorite devices without being connected to ‘the cloud?‘ Not really”
If by cloud, you mean the Internet, that’s only true if one goes on line! We spend most our time on the three devices *off-line*, not connected to the cloud at all! Plus, the “cloud” is different than the Internet itself!
2. “Buying products online? That’s all cloud-based.” Certainly it involves a 3rd party server.
3. “Got a Calendar and email and Contacts that sync up between your Apple iDevices? They’re all connected to the cloud (as in Apple’s version, iCloud).”
Sorry, we sync all of our iOS devices (iPhones, iPads, etc.) and iCloud is OFF!
4. “The cloud as we know it is hackable; if it’s not credit card number theft, it’s personal photos we’d rather not share with the world.”
We haves hundreds to thousands of photos–and nary a single one is in the cloud! (And none are naked famous celebrity photos, either!)
5. Off-the-grid is a viable strategy, at least in the sense of not STORING stuff in the cloud!
But you are right, trust but verify, limit use, confine it to well known sites and companies, etc.
The Kinks, of course, were right! (See how many get that reference!)
ben says
The problem with your response and analysis is that it’s individualized for your situation, and not reflective of the average Mac user, iPhone user, or iPad user.
The cloud is merely a part of the internet as a whole, though often synonymous. Living an average life as an Apple device owner is pretty much dependent upon using the cloud– whether Dropbox, Gmail, iCloud, or buying anything online.
It’s all cloud-based, which means a remote networked server somewhere out there.