Cloud storage is incredibly convenient, but it can also be confusing. Sometimes youre just not sure what files to put up there or if you should store anything online at all. One way to approach the issue is to ask yourself what you want to get out of storing files online. Is your overarching concern convenience, security, or a mix of the two?

Heres a look at what you might call three different cloud personalities that can help you decide what you want to get out of a service like Google Drive, OneDrive, or Dropbox. Ive also included some suggestions about services or strategies that might work best for each type.

This type of person who isnt concerned with issues surrounding security or privacy like hackers or governmental snooping. Their primary concern is simply having access to their files across all their devices.

The fact that most cloud storage companies secure downloads and uploads via HTTPS and keep personal files in a secure manner in their data centers is enough reassurance for these people.

If this sounds like you, then you probably shouldnt worry too much about what kinds of files you put online. But even if youre care-free youd still do well to keep any personal financial information out of the cloudjust in case.

Care-free types would find OneDrive a good choice, since Microsoft offers unlimited cloud storage to Office 365 subscribers paying $70 or $100 per year, or 15GB of free storage (with the option to pay affordable prices for more) to non-O365 subscribers.

This type of person is more wary of the cloud after the Snowden revelations. Constant stories of hacking also remind the secure types how vulnerable online information can be to exposure.

There isnt really a perfect answer for the deeply security consciousat its core, cloud storage is all about storing your files on somebody elses serverbut a good solution might be to encrypt files yourself before they get sent up to the cloud.

The thing about self-encrypting files is that you have to be careful not to have an encrypted file open on two devices at once. That could end up corrupting the file. You also have to figure out how youre going to decrypt files on your various devices. If you use something like miniLock, for example, youll be restricted to accessing your files on PCs.

Secure types will also want to watch out for features on their smartphone that automatically upload photos and other data such as passwords to the cloud.

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Which cloud personality are you? Three ways to approach online storage