Encrypted Cloud backup solution?

[swealpha]

Hello Macrumors!
I hope you guys are great. Me, myself i am getting kinda crazy here. 😭😭
I cant find a easy solution for my what you could call a easy "issue". What is wrong with me?

I want to be able to backup my files encrypted on icloud or Google Drive (I can get both cheap, about 35USD/2TB/year).
This means, even if my icloud or google drive gets hacked the files will be safe.

Requirments of the software or solution:
** Easy and simple to use. Not unnecessarily advanced.
** Supported by HIGH SIERRA MACOS
** Fast to upload, I got 500Mbit connection
** Easy to read and recover single files from encrypted backup. Not forcing a full restore or something just to get 1 old file.
** Not break Time Machine function in any way, because i also use Time Machine localy.

I would be very happy if you guys could help me find a solution, maybe I could solve the issue in another way? Hmmm.


Here is what i have found and tested but didnt like:


----------------------------
Duplicacy
To advanced. Need something easy.
----------------------------
Cryptomator
Killed the Time Machine function.
"""It seems the mounted unencrypted volume can not be backuped by time machine. """
----------------------------
Expandrive
Got alot of bad reviews.
----------------------------
mountainDUCK:
Needs auth code etc from Google API??
Needs cryptomator to encrypt.
Not simple to use.
----------------------------
syncovery
DONT WORK TO MINIMIZE, need to have it irritating in the dock.
Not possible to read backed up files, need to restore all to see the files.
----------------------------
Backblaze
9USD/month - expensive because i already have icloud/google drive. It would be a extra cost for me. And also because i didnt feel enough safe with Backblaze, both the software and the hosting is from them. Prefer to have a separate software / host(cloud).
----------------------------
Carbon copy cloner
dont encrypt
----------------------------
Cloudmounter
Will encrypt but dont have sync function, need a second software for that.
---------------------------
ARQ(Have not tested it, but remember you guys told its very slow to restore backup and a 1-man company)
---------------------------
Goodsync
how trustworthy is goodsync? I mean, they could have a backdoor to steal my icloud pass that they want me to put INSIDE the goodsync app.
**Feels dumb to trust goodsync instead of the cloud service.
Not so good review from employes iether:
https://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Siber-Systems-Reviews-E268603.htm
https://www.siber.com/about Russian CEO.
---------------------------
get backup pro
Ukraine Company. Ukraine is a very corrupt country.
https://www.belightsoft.com/products/getbackup/
https://www.belightsoft.com/company/
---------------------------
syncback
No MACOS SUPPORT?
https://alternativeto.net/software/syncback/about/
---------------------------

I will continue update this list of tested software.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for help.

 

[Bigwaff]

I've been using Arq w/ Wasabi cloud storage for half a decade. Works great. Files are encrypted. Not a full system backup, just user accounts and important external storage files. Restore isn't the fastest but this is my emergency backup. My main is alternating TimeMachine backups between Synology NAS and external USB HD.

 

[chrfr]

Carbon copy cloner
dont encrypt

If you have Carbon Copy Cloner copying to an encrypted disk, then yes, the backup would be encrypted.

 

[posguy99]

----------------------------
Backblaze (expensive)
hard to restore old files, need to do it on there webpage?
----------------------------

Backblaze is expensive? It's $7/month for all the data you can eat. It's set it and forget it. You can retrieve files from the client installed on macOS, from the client installed on iOS, or from the web. Or you can have them send you a complete copy of the backup whenever you need it.

It encrypts the backup.

Not meant to be a commercial, just a satisfied customer.

 

[swealpha]

Sorry that was directly from my private notes. I mean expensive because i already have icloud/google drive. It would be a extra cost for me. And also because i didnt feel enough safe with Backblaze, both the software and the hosting is from them. Prefer to have a separate software / host(cloud).


Maybe I just need a simple encrypted backup software, because icloud is in Finder already.
Dont need to be a specific software working directly to icloud/google drive.

Thank you for advice.

 

[bogdanw]

Tresorit https://tresorit.com/individuals

 

[svenmany]

You could try an encrypted disk image. If you make it a sparse image, then it will only be as large is necessary. Do you know about that?

I just did a test; it works fine with iCloud Drive. That is, I created an encrypted sparse bundle disk image on one machine and put some files in it. Then I went to another machine and mounted it; the files were there.

 

[bogdanw]

Ars Technica "Top cloud backup services worth your money"
https://arstechnica.com/information...m-top-cloud-backup-services-worth-your-money/

 

[ThrowerGB]

I've used CrashPlan for Small Business, created by Code42 Software, Inc. for a number of years now. I also use Time Machine alternating between twin hard disks connected via USB.

• I'm not a small business. They used to have a version for ordinary people, but discontinued it.
• It costs US$9.99/mn for a single user. And has 30 day free trial.
• I can add additional users and can control how CrashPlan deals with them.
• Amount of backup storage used is stated as unlimited, although I don't know what would happen if you tried testing that.
• You can put the backups on your own cloud storage or on theirs.
• Their backup sites are located in the U.S. and Australia.
• Everything is encrypted. You don't give them the encryption key, so the backups are pretty secure.
• It's not the fastest thing in the world but does the job for me.
• It has several different checks it runs to ensure integrity between the current files and the backed up files.
• There is a lot of flexibility in when things are run, and different ways of scheduling.
• You can specify separate backup sets. i.e. I have one set for Music, Photos, & Movies. It's large but doesn't change often. (Actually Photos files do change often). And a different set for everything else. Hmm, maybe I should create a 3rd set and move Photos from where it is now to the 3rd set.
• Once you set it up, you don't need to interact with it.
• I store the current files for Music, Photos, & Movies on an external SSD. Just to keep them separate and not use up Macintosh HD space.
• They have an FAQ that's pretty comprehensive and therefor much better than most. It's not just marketing speech, rather it has lots of info about what the software can do and suggestions on how to use it.
• I rarely need to recover things from that backup because it's secondary to Time Machine. But I've tested it (not recently or regularly) and it does what it says.
• I have the advantage of 1st level backup to onsite Time Machine and 2nd level to CrashPlan's offsite storage.

Hope you find this useful.

 

[stradify]

Ars Technica "Top cloud backup services worth your money"
https://arstechnica.com/information...m-top-cloud-backup-services-worth-your-money/

I read that article this morning and was pleased to find that they came to the same conclusion as I did after trying out a half dozen different cloud backup companies.

 

[swealpha]

Hello guys!
I have updated the list in the first post.

Will continue to update, I think I need to find something that is open source. I get more and more paranoia of this research LOL.


Goodsync
How trustworthy is goodsync?
I mean, they could have a backdoor to steal my icloud pass that they want me to put INSIDE the goodsync app.
**Feels dumb to trust goodsync instead of the cloud service.
Not so good review from employes iether:
https://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Siber-Systems-Reviews-E268603.htm
https://www.siber.com/about Russian CEO.

 

[bogdanw]

CryFS: "Comparison of encrypted cloud storage solutions" https://www.cryfs.org/comparison

 

[swealpha]

**
Duplicacy seemed like a good software that is open source. Owner is Chinese.
But after seeing this i dont feel that safe anymore.

https://imgur.com/RIzexOi

**
Backblaze seems OK, just trying to figure out if the software has been verified in any way.
Asked about it here:
https://www.reddit.com/r/backblaze/comments/10ykxpi
***
MSP360 CloudBerry Backup
Norwegian founder
(Needs extra software to mount the cloud, that sucks.).

***
CLOUDmounter + syncmate (need 2 apps from same company).
Ukrainan company. Ukraine is very corrupt country, dont know how to trust this.

***
Acronis Cyber Protect Home Office
License to use the software cost 60 usd / year.. no one-time-fee.
Russian founder.

 

[ChrisA]

Backblaze is expensive? It's $7/month for all the data you can eat. It's set it and forget it. You can retrieve files from the client installed on macOS, from the client installed on iOS, or from the web. Or you can have them send you a complete copy of the backup whenever you need it.

It encrypts the backup.

Not meant to be a commercial, just a satisfied customer.

I agree 100%. Backblaze is the best and lowest priced option. One important thing they do is keep VERSIONED copies. Without this your backup is worthless.

Why do you need versioning. This is a common scenario. You have a file you back up up and all is good. Then unknown to you, the file is corrupted. Then your next backup overwrites your only good copy of the files with the corrupted version. NEVER overwrite old backups. Backblaze lets you decide to keep a few old versions or to pay more and keep many old versions.

NEVER use a service that overwrites old backup data.

This is why Time Machine is so good, it never over writes old data. TM should be your #1 first line of defense and Backblaze your second line. If you need a third line depends on the value of your data.

As long as the data is encrypted before it is sent, you are good.

But if you have a Mac, you can encrypt the local disk.

 

[posguy99]

Sorry that was directly from my private notes. I mean expensive because i already have icloud/google drive.

Neither one of which is a backup solution.

 

[posguy99]

This is why Time Machine is so good, it never over writes old data. TM should be your #1 first line of defense and Backblaze your second line. If you need a third line depends on the value of your data.

I use Time Machine to a Synology which itself is backed up to Amazon Glacier (no comment, I know it's slow and it sucks). I CCC to a set of local USB drives every night. And I use Backblaze.

I think I'm covered.

 

[fdw777]

You could try an encrypted disk image. If you make it a sparse image, then it will only be as large is necessary. Do you know about that?

I just did a test; it works fine with iCloud Drive. That is, I created an encrypted sparse bundle disk image on one machine and put some files in it. Then I went to another machine and mounted it; the files were there.

IMHO, this by far the cheapest and most secure for the money! And it's Time Machine backed up!

 

[Apple_Robert]

Hello guys!
I have updated the list in the first post.

Will continue to update, I think I need to find something that is open source. I get more and more paranoia of this research LOL.


Goodsync
How trustworthy is goodsync?
I mean, they could have a backdoor to steal my icloud pass that they want me to put INSIDE the goodsync app.
**Feels dumb to trust goodsync instead of the cloud service.
Not so good review from employes iether:
https://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Siber-Systems-Reviews-E268603.htm
https://www.siber.com/about Russian CEO.

Don’t ever put your iCloud account password in a third party app.

 

[whitestar27]

This is something I was looking into recently. I use Veracrypt to encrypt local drives but I wanted something I could use for cloud backups and Veracrypt is no good because even a 1 byte change to a 1tb container would require the whole 1tb to be reuploaded.
I've been recommended instead to use a product called cryptomator. It's open source and audited just like Veracrypt but it's designed for encrypting things on the cloud.

Cryptomator - Free & Open-Source Cloud Storage Encryption

Cryptomator is an open-source encryption tool for secure cloud storage. Protect your privacy for free on Dropbox, Google Drive, OneDrive, and more.

cryptomator.org

Edit: Just after posting I re-read your initial post and this time spotted it in your list that you'd rejected. Oh well

 

[svenmany]

Neither one of which is a backup solution.

Given the OP's initial statement of the problem, both iCloud and Google Drive could easily be a piece of a backup solution. My takeaway from OP's original question was an inquiry into what software could be used to take advantage of the storage they already have in iCloud and Google Drive.

I did mention an encrypted disk image kept on the local machine and sync'd to any offsite location. Another solution which is more tried and true, and something I use, is Arq Backup. You don't have to buy into their full cloud storage offering. You can just buy their software and use it to make encrypted, versioned, scheduled or on demand backups to many locations. One location could be directly to Google Drive. Another location could be to ~/Documents/ArqBackup. In the second instance you could have Time Machine backups of that and it would also go to iCloud, assuming you keep your Documents folder there.

One pattern I follow is to keep private stuff in ~/DocumentsPrivate (that never goes offsite). Then that content would be backed up by Arq Backup to *any* public location without worry; the encryption is pretty rock solid. Also, it doesn't back up to a monolithic archive; it uses a bunch of smaller files whose diffs are more efficiently transferred offsite.

Currently I use Arq Backup in a number ways. I use it to back up my Mac documents to encrypted files on OneDrive, Dropbox, AWS S3. On Windows I use it to make unencrypted frequent backups of my development work to another drive on the same machine.

It's a pretty powerful and flexible tool to capitalize on many different backup destinations that you might already have or be paying for.

 

[HDFan]

iCloud and Google Drive could easily be a piece of a backup solution

As above iCloud is not a backup solution as deleted files are removed after 30 days and no versioning. Dunno about Google Drive.

Retention periods vary for online services. CrashPlan is 90 days, Carbonite 60 days, BackBlaze forever available for a small extra charge.

I use all 3 but prefer Backblaze.

 

[Winterfibre]

Mega

 

[benwiggy]

both iCloud and Google Drive could easily be a piece of a backup solution.

iCloud is NOT a backup. Over-write a file, and that change gets synced to all your devices. There's no way to recover the previous version. Deleted files are only kept for 30 days.
Google drive does have versioning, though I'm not sure I'd rely on it for backups.

 

[swealpha]

The issue is, how do you trust this small companies or "one man apps" that wants me to type in the google password inside the app or giving full access to Google Drive?


It feels like giving away your sensetive data to some random and tell them to upload it encrypted.
"-Here is my superb app with hidden source code, it encrypts and uploads data, just type in your password and give full access. Trust me bro i am a anonymous guy from the most corrupt country on earth. What could go wrong?" 😈😈


That is why I try to find a solution that has a very big company behind or is open source.

I just try to miniminize the risk.

 

[svenmany]

iCloud is NOT a backup. Over-write a file, and that change gets synced to all your devices. There's no way to recover the previous version. Deleted files are only kept for 30 days.
Google drive does have versioning, though I'm not sure I'd rely on it for backups.

I can’t tell if you’re disagreeing with my assertion that it can be a piece of a backup solution or just making the very important point that it fails completely when used by itself.