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Saucy snaps at risk as embarrassed users shun safe backup

8th March 2012 Print

One in 10 people don’t make safe and secure copies of photos taken on their digital cameras as they are too saucy and want to reduce the risk of other people seeing them, according to a new survey. A further one in 12 is failing to back up photossnapped on their mobile phone because they fear they might go viral.

The poll by One.com, the supplier of web hosting services, found that less than half (44 per cent) of those questioned back up pictures taken with their mobile phone. Most of those that don’t (92 per cent) claim it is too difficult or that they don’t have time to do so. This is despite the fact that 81 per cent say their biggest fear about losing their personal image bank is the loss of once in a lifetime memories.

However, for those that do back up their images, the majority (51 per cent) save to their home computer, ignoring the risks that this may bring in the event that this device is lost, stolen or damaged. Furthermore, 16 per cent of respondents admit they rely on Facebook and other social networking or photo sharing services as a kind of backup, despite these services not being designed for long-term image storage and the potential for undermining their online privacy.

The study found that images taken on digital cameras fare only slightly better. Nearly nine out of ten people do save images taken on their digital camera somewhere other than the smart card in the device. But, it is the home computer (49 per cent) or social networking sites (17 per cent) that act as the primary backup points once again.

“Many of us have or have friends that have lost sentimental and irreplaceable images due to mobile phone theft or hard drive computer failure for example. But, our research shows few of us take heed of the dangers of photo loss,” said Thomas Medard Frederiksen, COO at One.com. “For those that do believe they back up, they don’t necessarily choose the safest most reliable options such as online or external storage. Instead they rely on their home computer or social networking sites such as Facebook as their de-facto backup options giving them a false sense of security and leaving them at risk of losing those precious memories.

“For others, embarrassment stops them making safe copies because the photos may be of an intimate nature andthey want to limit the chances of other people seeing or disseminating them,” he added.

The One.com photo storing survey was conducted among 468 respondents from the UK in February 2012.