R.J. Cross
Director, Consumer Privacy Program, U.S. PIRG Education Fund
Consumer Protection Week 2025: How to store important documents in the cloud safely
Media Contacts
Mark Morgenstein
Director of Media Relations, The Public Interest Network
[email protected]
BOSTON — Nearly 1 in 5 Americans has at some point had to evacuate their homes during a severe weather event, according to an October 2024 YouGov poll. Being prepared for such a natural disaster includes not only having prescriptions and pet supplies in your emergency “go bag.” You also want to have a plan for your important paperwork. U.S. PIRG Education Fund’s new consumer guide, The best way to store important documents before disaster hits, will help you disaster-proof your documents.
“When you get an evacuation order is not the time to be looking for your child’s birth certificate,” said R.J. Cross, U.S. PIRG Education Fund’s consumer privacy program director. “Having your important documents ready to go will save you a lot of headache.”
Disaster-proofing documents means storing physical copies safely at home or in a safety deposit box at the bank; having them sorted and easily accessible in the case of an evacuation; and having digital backups. Digital copies may help you get physical replacements more easily, and help you have information such as account numbers at your fingertips if you need to make loan forbearance requests or insurance claims. For many consumers, storing copies of documents in a cloud will be the most convenient option.
“No cloud storage is foolproof,” said Cross. “There’s always some risk involved when storing your information digitally on a cloud company’s servers. Hacks and breaches happen. But you can take steps to help mitigate those risks.”
The guide offers a list of important documents to think about, as well as best practices for selecting which documents to back up digitally and how to use a cloud to do so, including:
- Choosing a cloud service that uses end-to-end encryption
- Password-protecting individual documents inside a cloud
- Turning on two-factor authentication for all email and cloud accounts
See our full coverage of Consumer Protection Week:
Tips, Tools and Step-by-Step Guides