Drop Box

[S T]

Has anyone used Drop Box to transfer Data Files?

Sandy

[AZ-Tax]

Drop Box seems to be a back up plus more

Upon looking at the promo video, it looks like a "back up" similar to Carbonite, Mozy etc. except it looks to go further by auto updating your files to your phone, laptop & desktop so all 3 of devices have the current files at all times. So one could be some where with their laptop entering a file for which NO wifi exist. You then get to your office and power on your laptop thus connecting to your internet at home and Drop Box automaticlly pulls the new file from your laptop, adds to the Drop Box plus sends it out to the Desk Top and Phone the instant you Power them on automatically.

Am I correct on this? For me, I currently only use my Laptop but from time to time I add someones contact info for which I would need to update the data from m laptop to my phone via cable. Drop Box looks like it will do that automaticlly but for $120/yr vs my $59 for 13 mos Carbonite, i dont know if its work it.

[Gretel]

Yes, it works great. I am using it the third year now. Not only do you have all files updated all the times on all computers you want to have updated files, but you call pull up the online account from any computer. I even have my tax software client files in the Dropbox folder, so even when I work on a tax return it is updated all the time.

You can share any folder with anyone you wish BUT they must subscribe to their service, which is free up to 2gb, which is plenty enough for a client.

I heard from a reputable source (other than Dropbox) that their servers are very secure.

[MilTaxEA]

I heard from a reputable source (other than Dropbox) that their servers are very secure.

Except the fact that for at least four hours last year you could log onto any account with any password and see/modify that users files. I still use Dropbox, but I manually created a TrueCrypt encrypted partition to secure my client files since I no longer trust Dropbox's security.

[joanmcq]

I use dropbox to move files from my laptop to my desktop & vice versa. I have a client portal and iDrive backup, so I don't need those features from Dropbox.

[geekgirldany]

I started using dropbox after box.net wanted me to pay for a business account. Although I do no mind paying for a business account.... $50 a month is a little to much for as little as I use it. So I switched to DropBox only for client's files. I delete them after I download for safety.

[FEDUKE404]

Associate questions

Assuming you are using a laptop for most of your work (along with Drop Box):

1 - How do you "protect" your normal business transmissions when using a wifi system? (This is unrelated to any security issues of DB itself.)

2 - Do you protect the files/info on your own computer(s) should the computer be stolen and contain sensitive client data? If so, with what software?

Thanks!

FE

[MilTaxEA]

Assuming you are using a laptop for most of your work (along with Drop Box):

1 - How do you "protect" your normal business transmissions when using a wifi system? (This is unrelated to any security issues of DB itself.)

2 - Do you protect the files/info on your own computer(s) should the computer be stolen and contain sensitive client data? If so, with what software?

Thanks!

FE

1) WPA2 (do *not* use WEP or WPA1 as they are unsecure, especially WEP...that takes about five minutes to crack)
2) Encrypt your hard drive or user account. Windows 7 Professional has this built into the operating system, or you can use other software like TrueCrypt (which is what I use).

Remember, encryption is only as good as your password!

[FEDUKE404]

Access or more?

1) WPA2 (do *not* use WEP or WPA1 as they are unsecure, especially WEP...that takes about five minutes to crack)
2) Encrypt your hard drive or user account. Windows 7 Professional has this built into the operating system, or you can use other software like TrueCrypt (which is what I use).

Remember, encryption is only as good as your password!

Re network:

The information you have only relates to ACCESS to a network, i.e. your neighbor cannot use "your" signal without a password.

Does that also protect the data itself? (encryption)

FWIW: I already have WPA2-PSK (AES) plus password for my router, but generally do most work at home (including personal stuff) using my desktop.

My apologies for being so dense.

FE

[Gretel]

1)
2) Encrypt your hard drive or user account. Windows 7 Professional has this built into the operating system, or you can use other software like TrueCrypt (which is what I use).

Remember, encryption is only as good as your password!

I am interested in using TrueCrypt for my harddrive. I have used them for external drive encryption before with no problems. However, some years ago, I tested another recommended company and encountered problems, so I didn't dare again. Did you encounter any problems, especially with backups after the installation? Were you able to use the acceleration feature and, if so, how did it work?

Thank you.

[MilTaxEA]

Re network:
The information you have only relates to ACCESS to a network, i.e. your neighbor cannot use "your" signal without a password.

Does that also protect the data itself? (encryption)

Yes, WPA2 encrypts all the traffic on the wireless network. Without encryption (or if you use an easy-to-crack encryption) people can sit far away from your house with a directional antenna and listen to *everything* you transmit over the air. However, if you use websites with SSL/TLS that would be encrypted.

[MilTaxEA]

I am interested in using TrueCrypt for my harddrive. I have used them for external drive encryption before with no problems. However, some years ago, I tested another recommended company and encountered problems, so I didn't dare again. Did you encounter any problems, especially with backups after the installation? Were you able to use the acceleration feature and, if so, how did it work?

Thank you.

TrueCrypt works well for me. I had used it to create an encrypted container that can be mounted as a seperate hard drive. I'm paranoid about backing up the encryped file multiple times a day just to hedge against the remote possibility that the file becomes corrupted and therefore I would lose all my files. I have not used the acceleration features of TrueCrypt.

Right now I'm using Win7 Home Premium. If I had a better version of Windows 7 (Pro or Enterprise), I would probably use BitLocker or Encrypted File System since they provide a more transparent and (maybe) reliable system.

[Koss]

Truecrypt

We have used Truecrypt in our office for several years, and we are satisfied with it.

I had one serious problem a few months ago, but it was not caused by a flaw or failure in the program. It was user error, and a failure to maintain adequate backups. The program itself is sound.

With that being said, the program is a bit complicated. Decisions about how to use the program, and which features to enable, are not for the faint of heart.

I have extensive experience using Truecrypt for encrypted file containers, encrypted USB flash drives, and encrypted partitions within a hard drive. I have not actually used the program to encrypt an entire system, i.e., the partition of the hard drive that contains the OS and all program files.

Gretel, you can e-mail me if you want to, and I'll try to answer any questions you have.

BMK

[joanmcq]

My laptop used to be my main computer, but I upgraded to the beefiest desktop I could about a year ago. But I had problems installing my tax software all the way back to 1999 (I did it wrong, but didn't see the need to fix it), but if I'm working on a year older than 2008 or sometimes if I just want to work in bed, or am away, I'll use the laptop, and transfer files.

I have a WPA2 router for my home system.

I'm also curious about TrueCrypt and other encryption systems. My roommate wanted to put it on the laptop, but I'm not the geek in the household. Also, the harddrive is **** near full. But I do worry about the thing being stolen.

[DonPriebe]

TrueCrypt

For what it's worth, the IRS mandates the use of TrueCrypt on all non-IRS owned computers used in the AARP/TCE (Tax Counseling for the Eldery) program.

The tricky part is setting up an automated routine that will backup the contents of the encrypted container without divulging the password somewhere in the coding.