Is my data safe in online drives, or should I back it up as well?

Andrew uses Google Drive and Dropbox to sync and store his data. Does he still need to make backups?

I use Google Drive and Dropbox to store all my data, and I assume that because my data is synced that it is safe. Is this the case or should I be backing it up as well? Andrew

It's very handy to have files synchronised with online services such as Google Drive, Dropbox, Microsoft OneDrive, Apple iCloud, Flickr or whatever. You should be able to retrieve most or all of your photos if your smartphone or laptop breaks or is lost or stolen. However, you can never assume that your data is safe, whether you're asking about cloud services, network servers, PCs, smartphones, USB hard drives, thumb drives, SD cards, or CD-Rom, DVD or Blu-ray discs. I might make an exception for stone tablets, but they are not practicable for storing photos and videos.