[LINK] why cloud storage alone is dangerous

[Jan Whitaker]

[Any data store can be disrupted and/or destroyed by the choice of a 
3rd party. I feel sorry for the people who just lost their stored 
data on Megaupload, regardless of what may have been going on in part 
of the system, legal or otherwise. This is like the Australian 
Government deciding to burn down a post processing centre in 
Melbourne because some dope sent prohibited material in Sydney.]


Kim Dotcom slams Megaupload 'data massacre'

Published: June 20, 2013 - 9:10AM

Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom has condemned a Dutch company's 
decision to delete millions of files belonging to users of his 
defunct website, calling it "the largest data massacre in the history 
of the internet".

"Millions of personal #Megaupload files, petabytes of pictures, 
backups, personal & business property forever destroyed," the New 
Zealand-based internet tycoon tweeted after revealing that Leaseweb 
had deleted files belonging to Megaupload customers in Europe from its servers.

The fate of Megaupload data has been uncertain since January last 
year, when US authorities shut down the file-sharing site and 
directed New Zealand police to arrest Dotcom for alleged online piracy.

Dotcom maintains that most of the data stored on Megaupload was 
legitimate, non-copyright material such as personal photographs and 
business documents that should be returned to users.

However, it is stored on rented servers owned by hosting companies 
such as Haarlem-based Leaseweb, which said it could not hold the data 
indefinitely with no payment while the Megaupload court case drags on.

"After a year of nobody showing any interest in the servers and data 
we considered our options," it said in a statement. "We did inform 
Megaupload about our decision to re-provision the servers."

Dotcom said he was never warned the data would be wiped and 
repeatedly asked Leaseweb to retain it until his court case was settled.

He said other hosting companies had agreed to put Megaupload data in 
storage while the legal battle continues, giving users hope they 
might eventually get their material back.

"Let me be crystal clear. #Leaseweb has NEVER informed our legal team 
or anybody at #Megaupload about the deletion of servers until TODAY," 
he tweeted.

He said he was in tears over the situation and some of his own files 
needed for his defence had been deleted.

At its peak, the Megaupload empire had 50 million daily visitors and 
accounted for four per cent of all internet traffic.

US authorities allege it netted more than $US175 million and cost 
copyright owners more than $US500 million by offering pirated copies 
of movies, TV shows and other content.

The US Justice Department and FBI hope to extradite Dotcom to face 
charges of racketeering, fraud, money laundering and copyright theft, 
which could see him jailed for up to 20 years if convicted.

The German national denies any wrongdoing and is free on bail in New 
Zealand ahead of his extradition hearing. He has started a new 
file-sharing venture called Mega.

AFP

This story was found at: 
http://www.theage.com.au/technology/technology-news/kim-dotcom-slams-megaupload-data-massacre-20130620-2ok27.html 




Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
jwhit at janwhitaker.com
blog: http://janwhitaker.com/jansblog/
business: http://www.janwhitaker.com

Our truest response to the irrationality of the world is to paint or 
sing or write, for only in such response do we find truth.
~Madeline L'Engle, writer

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