document: title: security and privacy
text: ### Encryption

Your data is encrypted with 256-bit AES encryption on transfer and storage. You can also set your privacy to the highest level by creating a private key for your account during signup. That means no one but you will have access to your data. You don't get this privacy with iCloud or Google Drive. We put your privacy in your hands.

Whether you backup your desktops, servers or mobile devices to the cloud or use IDrive Express to seed your initial backup, your data is stored encrypted. The private key based option is available consistently across ALL platforms and transport modes.

### Physical security

The IDrive application is hosted at our data centers in the United States. The world-class facilities are custom designed with raised floors, HVAC temperature control systems with separate cooling zones and seismically braced racks. They offer the widest range of physical security features, including state-of-the-art smoke detection and fire suppression systems, motion sensors, 24/7 secured access, video camera surveillance and security breach alarms.

### Network security

We have periodic third party reviews of our network infrastructure to check for known application and service vulnerabilities. 

### Backup of backups

Your data resides on RAID-protected storage devices. We strongly recommend that you keep a local backup of your data, and our desktop clients now support encrypted local backups with private key option. Online Backup should be a complementary solution to local backup and not be the ONLY solution for disaster recovery.

Note:  
IDrive DOES NOT store your private encryption key on the servers. We recommend that you archive it safely for future use as you will be unable to decrypt (restore) data backed up to IDrive, without it.