INTRODUCTION
If you are using Mac or iPhone or Windows PC.
Yes! Even windows machines can be connected to iCloud through Apple ID.
What is iCloud?
iCloud is the generic name for all of the cloud based or internet-based services Apple delivers to us whether that’s
on a Mac, iPhone, or a PC running Windows. The service enables its users to store data such as documents,
photos, and music on remote servers which can be downloaded on iOS, macOS or windows devices. It makes
it convenient for users to share and send data to other users as well.
How iCloud works?
iCloud makes data synching very easy! It securely stores your photos, videos, documents, music, apps, and more
such applications and keeps them updated across all your devices connected to it. Apple provides 5 GB of free
iCloud storage for its users. Well the best part about iCloud is that the user doesn’t always have to manually back
up their data to the cloud. It has made this service as easy as charging your devices. So, every time you plug your
apple device into a wall outlet or a computer to charge it, the device will attempt to back itself up to the cloud. It
also makes sharing quite easy. First you set up iCloud on your IOS device or mac. Then you sign in on
your other devices and computers using the same apple ID. Once this is done any changes made of one device will be
reflected on the other entire device.
Before the iCloud, there existed a similar service which was known as MobileMe. It was launched on January 5,
2000.It is a subscription based collection of online services. With it you could have a chunk of cloud
storage accessible from your Mac computers. It, however, came at a cost. Some of the reasons for its failure
were its inability to recover from a miserable debut and its performance remained uneven. Steve Jobs
acknowledged this failure and identified the cloud as the obvious next step of his “digital hub” strategy. iCloud
finally replaced MobileMe in October 2011. After its launch, Apple made concerted and constant efforts to
improve iCloud. While it seemed to remain far from perfect, it embarked in a crusade to change the way
customers store and access their files and applications.
What all does iCloud do?
We know till now that the basic purpose of this technology is to share and backup data among all your
devices. Apart from this, It also allows to stream music and videos from the cloud. If it were, you could play
media content directly from iCloud rather than having to download it first. This could be particularly useful if you
have a large music or video collection and don’t want to use up all the available space on your iPhone, iPad or
iPod Touch. These are partial backups that store only the data you’ve changed on the device.
so many similar cloud storage facilities exist then why iCloud?
There are a lot of similar cloud services that exist such as Google Drive, One Drive and Dropbox that facilitate
storing of our files.
So, What makes iCloud so different?
Well, iCloud specifically caters to Apple users and makes their sharing and backing up of data a piece of cake. But
it doesn’t just stop there. It also has two distinct features that other companies don’t provide. The first service
uses cloud to help you find your device if you lose it. It’s called the Find My Device feature. You have to sign in
to iCloud.com or have the Find My iPhone app, you can see your missing device on a map or play a sound. It
provides an approximate location of your device. And you can use Lost Mode to lock, track, or remotely erase
all of your personal information. The second service is the Find My Friends service which was added to
iCloud alongside the launch of iOS 5. It allows users to share their current location with their friends or
family. Concurrently with the launch of iOS 5, Apple also released an app for Find My Friends. iOS 6 added
location-based alerts to notify the user when a device arrives at a certain location.
How secure is iCloud?
Security is one of the major concerns of any company offering cloud storage. Apple’s iCloud is
considered to be one of the most secured cloud storage in the market. Apple’s iCloud is considered to be one of
the most secured cloud storage in the market. Subsequently, Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, introduced a
two-factor authentication. When someone tries changing an account password, restoring iCloud data
to a new device, or when a device logs into an account for the first time, Apple will alert users through email
and push notifications. Whenever you try to sign into iCloud on a new device for the first time, you’ll be asked
to provide your password and a six-digit code (a complex alphanumeric code, or a generated random code). If
your device is “trusted,” the code is displayed automatically. For certain sensitive information, Apple uses
end-to-end encryption. End-to-end encryption provides the highest level of data security. Apple uses a minimum of
128-bit AES encryption. It’s not the best AES encryption algorithm, but it’s safe for the foreseeable future.
iCloud provides end-to-end encryption, as well, which is a type of encryption that’s designed to prevent third
parties from reading your data. Only those communicating directly have access. Messages in iCloud also use
end-to-end encryption. If you turn iCloud backup on, you will have a copy of the key protecting your messages
included in your backup. This enables you to recover your messages if you’ve lost access to iCloud Keychain and
your trusted devices. If you turn off iCloud Backup, a new key is generated on your device and it’s not stored by Apple.
Read more blogs like: BlockChain
References:
http://support.apple.com
http://www.cloudwards.net
