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Cloud Storage Provider Dropbox Receives an Increased Number of US Government Data Requests

September 14, 2014
by Staff Writer

Cloud storage provider Dropbox is receiving an increased number of US Government data requests. The news announced in Dropbox's transparency report published last week. The report specifies the type of requests received and the company's response to each one.

According to the report, Dropbox received 268 requests in the first 6 months of this year. Although sizable, the number should be considered against Dropbox's 300 million membership. In addition, Google received approximately 25,000 user data requests in the last 6 months of 2013. Despite the comparisons, according to the report, the number of requests received has been proportional to the company's growth over the period.

Dropbox is a paid cloud storage service which allows users to store and receive any manner of file in the cloud using a range of devices. The service features 256-bit AES encryption and two-step verification for security. It targets individual users, but the "Dropbox for Business" arm offers enterprises "robust admin controls, dedicated support" and, depending on the package purchases, an unlimited amount of storage space. The company is currently involved in a fierce price war with competitors such as Amazon, Microsoft, and Google.

The 268 data requests received by Dropbox vary in nature. They included court orders, subpoenas, and warrants to search data accounts. The company also received requests from outside the United States. Dropbox's responses varied depending on the source and nature of each request. According to the report, Dropbox received 120 search warrants and provided user's information and files as a result of 103 of the requests.

Dropbox's report comes in the wake of Microsoft receiving a ruling by a district court judge in the United States to hand over emails stored at its data center in Ireland. The ruling, made effective by Chief Judge Loretta Preska of the US district court in Manhattan, upheld a magistrate judge’s previous ruling made July 31, 2014. To date, Microsoft has resisted the order, putting the corporation in contempt of court.

What do you think? What should cloud storage companies requirements to handover data to government bodies be? Let us know your thoughts. Add your comments below.

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