Why Proton Drive Is The Cloud Storage Service Privacy Enthusiasts (Like Me) Swear By

As someone who is serious about privacy matters in our digital age, going as far as to ditch Google and replace Android with GrapheneOS, I'm a big fan of the Proton suite of services. Many of my compatriots probably use cloud-based writing platforms like Microsoft 365 or Google Drive, but I'll always put my money on Proton Drive in a straight-up, privacy-focused head-to-head.

Microsoft 365 used to be the standard for years, but with subscription price increases and forced AI integration, the platform no longer feels worth it. Google Drive is another popular cloud platform that I have used extensively over the years, but with Google trapping features behind a paywall, its future looks less and less viable. And that's before even talking about how Google is happy giving away your personal data in exchange for profits.

That is why, over the past year, I've moved my work to the Proton platform for the security benefits, which I've come to trust highly. This includes Proton Drive for cloud storage, Proton Mail for email, Proton Docs for writing (including this very piece), and Proton Pass for managing my passwords.

The first thing you'll notice about Proton Drive is its familiar look and feel, like Google's own suite of tools. But the secret sauce sits just under the hood. This is because Proton Drive uses end-to-end encryption so that no one can access your content. This includes Proton itself, meaning only you and those you choose can see the files you upload.

Because Proton is based in Europe, it's also protected by strict privacy laws, so privacy is a main selling point for the Proton suite of services. I know this from experience, having recently accessed the Proton suite on a new computer, but forgetting my password in the process. Proton let me change my password, but it locked down all my files until I entered my encryption key.

This means I could use the platform, but I couldn't access any of my files before the password change without the key. Since I'm the only one with access to this offline key, my files remained safely locked, even if someone had managed to change my password in an attempt to access my content.

Aside from storing files with Proton Drive, the full free suite offers comparable tools to those from both Google and Microsoft. Proton Docs lets you write and collaborate with others, Proton Sheets helps you stay organized, and Proton Meet handles work and personal video calls securely. 

Proton even has an AI assistant in the form of Lumo, which never shares your information and inquires with anyone. This means your AI chats stay private, aren't logged or used to train AI, and stay away from advertisers, governments, and even Proton itself. Add a handy VPN tool for the privacy-minded traveler, and you have an impressive toolset for those who value security.

All of Proton's apps are also open source and independently audited by security researchers, something the other two big players can't claim. You can even check out the code yourself to see what's going on under the hood. Everything is free to access, and Proton says they see privacy as a human right and that their tools will remain free forever.