How Secure is iCloud with Notes?

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Level 1

59 points

How Secure is iCloud with Notes?

Hello,

I use Notes often, I love how it sync's with all my OS and iOS stuff, but I would really like to make a Note that has all my passwords that way when I update or add one the new one will be on all my devices.

While I think the new Keychain is really great, there are still times when I need to know my actually passwords. As of now I have a safe but not very convenient way of doing this.

My question is how vulnerable is the data that is stored on iCloud ? would you trust all your passwords to be in the Cloud ?

I am guessing most would not, but maybe there is something I don't know that is making me paranoid !

Thanks for any input you may have.

John

iMac (21.5-inch Mid 2011), Mac OS X (10.7.3), Power Mac G4, iPad 2

Posted on Jan 15, 2014 9:21 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

randers4

Level 9

63,519 points

Jan 15, 2014 9:27 AM in response to Deadcowboy

This discusses iCloud security: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4865.

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Answer 2

Jan 15, 2014 9:28 AM in response to Deadcowboy

The following article(s) may help you.

iCloud Security Overview.

Are you aware you can access and look up your passwords via keychain.

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Answer 3

Deadcowboy Author

Level 1

59 points

Jan 15, 2014 10:29 PM in response to Deadcowboy

Thanks,

From the link you have pointed me to, it seems that Notes and Mail on iCloud use SSL encryption, In Transit , but not on the server.

I am not 100% sure what this means, or how it effects my security. I apologize for being uneducated about this subject, some of the information on about SSL and encryption is beyond my understanding.

I am hoping you can provide with a less technical explanation.

If I create a Note on my Mac it will get saved as a readable Note on iCloud, but it is encrypted when it moves from iCloud to say my iPhone? It this the general idea ?

Thanks

John

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Answer 4

Jan 16, 2014 4:55 AM in response to Deadcowboy

Deadcowboy wrote:

If I create a Note on my Mac it will get saved as a readable Note on iCloud, but it is encrypted when it moves from iCloud to say my iPhone? It this the general idea ?

Yes, that is more or less it. But do not forget that whilst it is on the server, anybody else would need your Apple ID and password in order to be able to access your notes.

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Answer 5

Deadcowboy Author

Level 1

59 points

Jan 16, 2014 7:36 AM in response to Winston Churchill

Thank You for you Help.

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Answer 6

Flyingdp

Level 1

82 points

Mar 3, 2014 5:28 AM in response to Winston Churchill

I understand that in OSX I can use the keychain app to access passwords etc, but where is that functionality on iOS devices?

Rob

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Answer 7

Deadcowboy Author

Level 1

59 points

Mar 3, 2014 6:12 AM in response to Flyingdp

Hello Rob,

In iOS passwords and autofill are located in Settings > Safari > Passwords &Autofill.

Hope that helps.

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Answer 8

Flyingdp

Level 1

82 points

Mar 3, 2014 6:44 AM in response to Deadcowboy

Yes. Thanks. Not a very intuitive location for that info...

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Answer 9

stweeks

Level 1

0 points

Sep 2, 2015 7:53 PM in response to Winston Churchill

This now seems outdated. Apples site says iCloud data is stored in an encrypted format on the servers. Perhaps this is due to the celebrity photo leak in 2014.

Source: iCloud security and privacy overview - Apple Support

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Answer 10

Sep 7, 2015 9:48 AM in response to stweeks

The linked article still has a table at the end which lists Notes only protected during transit and not protected on the server.

The Notes are still only accessible with authentication of your AppleID.

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