HTC EVO users concerned about new Dropbox Terms of Service?
One of the best and most frequently used apps I run on my HTC EVO is Dropbox. If you're like me, you have found that having certain files at your fingertips is an invaluable resource and may have even become so comfortable with it that adding somewhat sensitive files doesn't even throw up the smallest red flag. Should it?
Well, you may want to take a second look at the most recent revisions to Dropbox's Terms of Service. At the very least, anyone using it should have a close read so that they can make an educated decision regarding what, if anything, to share on the company's servers.
The whirlwind started July 1 with the release of a new ToS. Following that, there have been a few revisions because the reaction to the changed language was quite negative. You can understand why as it sure makes it sound like Dropbox owns anything that you sync to the service. As of July 6, the language read as follows:
…By using our Services you provide us with information, files, and folders that you submit to Dropbox (together, "your stuff"). You retain full ownership to your stuff. We don't claim any ownership to any of it. These Terms do not grant us any rights to your stuff or intellectual property except for the limited rights that are needed to run the Services, as explained below.
We may need your permission to do things you ask us to do with your stuff, for example, hosting your files, or sharing them at your direction. This includes product features visible to you, for example, image thumbnails or document previews. It also includes design choices we make to technically administer our Services, for example, how we redundantly backup data to keep it safe. You give us the permissions we need to do those things solely to provide the Services. This permission also extends to trusted third parties we work with to provide the Services, for example Amazon, which provides our storage space (again, only to provide the Services).
To be clear, aside from the rare exceptions we identify in our Privacy Policy, no matter how the Services change, we won't share your content with others, including law enforcement, for any purpose unless you direct us to. How we collect and use your information generally is also explained in our Privacy Policy…
All indications are that Dropbox is run by good people with good intentions. That said, we all know things can change. Couple that with the fact that this type of service is still somewhat new, and the legality of these issues still has many shades of grey to it.
What does the G&E community think? Will these changes affect or even end your Dropbox usage?
[Gizmodo]
