
Backblaze: to decrypt your backup, send us your private key passphrase - noja
https://help.backblaze.com/entries/20926247-Security-Question-Round-up-
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jonathonf
Firstly, the submission title is not a quote (for anyone wondering).

Secondly, how else do you expect the process to work? They don't hold your
key, so to decrypt the data you have to provide the key. The data is held on
their server, and to decrypt it to send to you they have to decrypt it. So you
have to provide the encryption key at some point? Once you have your data
restored, you can change the encryption key.

~~~
dogma1138
Locally or even during download in the browser mega.nz sends you encrypted
blobs which are decrypted using the download auth key after the download is
verified they use html5 storage and JavaScript to achieve this.

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jdenning
>So to recap: if you never actually prepare a restore, we cannot possibly know
what is in your files, but if you prepare a restore (let's say of a few files)
then for the couple minutes they are being prepared and downloaded they are in
"plain text" on a HIGHLY SECURE system in the Backblaze datacenter.

LOL - so you get to choose between having a backup that you can't verify by
doing a test restore, or encryption that isn't secure by putting your private
key on an un-trusted/non-audited server that you don't control.

> Backblaze focuses on ease of use. It is backup for people who need backup
> and "pretty good security" and who aren't computer professionals.

At least they acknowledge that "computer professionals" would likely be
skeptical of these options; on the other hand, it seems like they are
downplaying the lack of security in this scheme to their non-"computer
professionals" clients:

>All your files are encrypted before being transmitted over SSL and stored
encrypted. [1]

EDIT: >... even a malicious hacker in our datacenter could not possibly
compromise your data.. [2]

That's just false, and I'd bet they know it. I mean, they only use their root
keys on an air-gapped (non-networked) host, right? If not, then they should
really consider hiring someone who understands security a little better.

Want to convince me your system is really "HIGHLY SECURE"? How about
guaranteeing $1,000,000 payout to the user in the event of a breach? I mean it
"could not possibly" happen, right? :D

[1] [https://www.backblaze.com/cloud-
backup.html](https://www.backblaze.com/cloud-backup.html)

[2] (from the article) [https://help.backblaze.com/entries/20926247-Security-
Questio...](https://help.backblaze.com/entries/20926247-Security-Question-
Round-up-)

