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Have you seen the TV ads for cloud storage services? They’re advertising themselves as being dependable. We cannot blame average consumers when events like thes

Have you seen the TV ads for cloud storage services? They’re advertising themselves as being dependable. We cannot blame average consumers when events like these happen. We need to stop pretending that software, including free-as-in-beer SaaS, doesn’t have an implied warranty. It does. The implied warranty in Google Drive is that “we’ll host your files for you”. Google screwed-up (an “honest” mistake, it pains me to say) but a consumer advocate (the FTC in the US?) should be going after Google for failing to comply with their own implied warranty.

lp0_on_fire 5y ago
Google is well aware this is a problem and actively obfuscates ways to get connected to support (unless you pay them extra, of course) so I have a real hard time accepting this as an "honest" mistake.
- DaiPlusPlus 5y ago
  I mean the account lock-out was probably an honest mistake. The lack of support, however, is not - and is part of Google’s business model.
  - Kim_Bruning 5y ago
    Hmm, Isn't this moving the overton window? Should we accept that they were viewing his data in the first place?
    - skoskie 5y ago
      So much this. Host locally, and push encrypted backups to a cloud service. Doing this will screw Google’s ability to optimize storage for identical files, which may drive up costs, but it’s the best way to ensure your data stays private.
      - FpUser 5y ago
        >"So much this. Host locally, and push encrypted backups to a cloud service." Host locally and RENT backup servers in couple of places. Those cost peanuts and are highly reliable.
      - TedDoesntTalk 5y ago
        Do you have this automated?
    - b0tzzzzzzman 5y ago
      We should but, g00gl e employees are 10% of HN it seems. No one who works for a powerful entity likes admitting they are more or less powerless to daily statments they see on here. It's like how anyone with tech awareness watches the goal posts keep moving.. Yes, I know alternatives and mitigation and ECT. Power is a fickle mistress.
    - wintermutestwin 5y ago
      @skosie >Host locally, and push encrypted backups to a cloud service. Is there any "grandparent friendly" way to do this today?
      - nh2 5y ago
        Give them a NAS / old PC with shared network folder (Windows context menu or Samba on Linux), replicate the parts they want on phones etc. with Syncthing, and use any encrypted backup tool of your choice for the cloud backup.
- kbenson 5y ago
  Often people put quotes (or even air-quotes) around things to imply it's sarcasm or that it's only that thing if you can suspend disbelief, so I don't think there's any disagreement there. Additionally, making them accountable for these mistakes is a way to actually have them resolve them, so honest or not, it's likely to stop of decrease in occurrence then.
rob_c 5y ago
And what, a refund for 99% of the time what is a free at point of service to the consumer? For paying private customers yes I'd day fine but in most of these cases in ruling to bet the "free" 1GB was more than enough
- DaiPlusPlus 5y ago
  > And what, a refund for 99% of the time what is a free at point of service to the consumer? No, but give them a punitive fine (on the order of a percentage of their daily average profits) for failing to live-up to their own expectations set in their own advertising.
  - drran 5y ago
    Daily average profits for free service are 0.
    - Nextgrid 5y ago
      Then make it a simple fee/fine for screwing the customer. You promise that you're gonna host files and you deleted/restricted them? Pay $100 for every day that the files are unavailable. Legitimate companies will have no problem with that. Scum that wants to lure users in (to capture their personal data) but doesn't even have the decency to hold up their end of the bargain will have to reconsider whether they still want to provide such a service.
pdonis 5y ago
> Have you seen the TV ads for cloud storage services? Google Drive is not a "cloud storage service". You're not a paying customer of Google and you have no leverage with them at all. Putting your only copy of any data that you can't afford to lose on Google Drive is just asking for trouble. > Google for failing to comply with their own implied warranty There is no implied warranty for a service that's being given to you for free and for which you have no customer agreement or contract with Google. If you want a warranty, express or implied, you need to be a paying customer.

lp0_on_fire 5y ago

Google is well aware this is a problem and actively obfuscates ways to get connected to support (unless you pay them extra, of course) so I have a real hard time accepting this as an "honest" mistake.

DaiPlusPlus 5y ago
I mean the account lock-out was probably an honest mistake. The lack of support, however, is not - and is part of Google’s business model.
- Kim_Bruning 5y ago
  Hmm, Isn't this moving the overton window? Should we accept that they were viewing his data in the first place?
  - skoskie 5y ago
    So much this. Host locally, and push encrypted backups to a cloud service. Doing this will screw Google’s ability to optimize storage for identical files, which may drive up costs, but it’s the best way to ensure your data stays private.
    - FpUser 5y ago
      >"So much this. Host locally, and push encrypted backups to a cloud service." Host locally and RENT backup servers in couple of places. Those cost peanuts and are highly reliable.
    - TedDoesntTalk 5y ago
      Do you have this automated?
  - b0tzzzzzzman 5y ago
    We should but, g00gl e employees are 10% of HN it seems. No one who works for a powerful entity likes admitting they are more or less powerless to daily statments they see on here. It's like how anyone with tech awareness watches the goal posts keep moving.. Yes, I know alternatives and mitigation and ECT. Power is a fickle mistress.
  - wintermutestwin 5y ago
    @skosie >Host locally, and push encrypted backups to a cloud service. Is there any "grandparent friendly" way to do this today?
    - nh2 5y ago
      Give them a NAS / old PC with shared network folder (Windows context menu or Samba on Linux), replicate the parts they want on phones etc. with Syncthing, and use any encrypted backup tool of your choice for the cloud backup.
kbenson 5y ago
Often people put quotes (or even air-quotes) around things to imply it's sarcasm or that it's only that thing if you can suspend disbelief, so I don't think there's any disagreement there. Additionally, making them accountable for these mistakes is a way to actually have them resolve them, so honest or not, it's likely to stop of decrease in occurrence then.

rob_c 5y ago

And what, a refund for 99% of the time what is a free at point of service to the consumer? For paying private customers yes I'd day fine but in most of these cases in ruling to bet the "free" 1GB was more than enough

DaiPlusPlus 5y ago
> And what, a refund for 99% of the time what is a free at point of service to the consumer? No, but give them a punitive fine (on the order of a percentage of their daily average profits) for failing to live-up to their own expectations set in their own advertising.
- drran 5y ago
  Daily average profits for free service are 0.
  - Nextgrid 5y ago
    Then make it a simple fee/fine for screwing the customer. You promise that you're gonna host files and you deleted/restricted them? Pay $100 for every day that the files are unavailable. Legitimate companies will have no problem with that. Scum that wants to lure users in (to capture their personal data) but doesn't even have the decency to hold up their end of the bargain will have to reconsider whether they still want to provide such a service.

pdonis 5y ago

> Have you seen the TV ads for cloud storage services? Google Drive is not a "cloud storage service". You're not a paying customer of Google and you have no leverage with them at all. Putting your only copy of any data that you can't afford to lose on Google Drive is just asking for trouble. > Google for failing to comply with their own implied warranty There is no implied warranty for a service that's being given to you for free and for which you have no customer agreement or contract with Google. If you want a warranty, express or implied, you need to be a paying customer.