Firefox Send was a fantastic tool that allowed anyone on the internet to send large files for free using encryption. Unfortunately, the bad guys started using it, and Firefox pulled the plug.

The concept is simple, by visiting the service page, you upload your files, and the service provides a link that allows anyone to download the content. The challenge with most free services is that they are insecure, and most are slow (encouraging you to buy their faster service).

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Wormhole one such service that leverages WebTorrent for fast transfers, promises end-to-end encryption and is free (with no upsell). Wormhole doesn't even require registration. Transfers of 5GB or less are handled by their servers, which means your browser doesn't even have to remain open.

Traditional torrents require special clients, but WebTorrent is a gateway that allows any torrent files to be shared through a web browser (no special client or unique configuration).

When you create a new transfer, your device generates a unique encryption key used to encrypt the content before it is sent to the Wormhole servers.

The unique twist

Remember that Wormhole is built with a combination of traditional web technologies married to torrenting. This unique combination makes their service faster than most competitors. But the magic is that the recipient can start downloading the content before you have completed the upload. This streaming functionality is something no other competitors (that I am aware of) offer. This means you can share the link with the recipient while you are uploading the content (and not have to wait until everything is uploaded).

It's good but not perfect

Perfection is the enemy of good and there are some limitations you should be aware of:

If you upload content larger than 5GB (up to the 10GB limit), you have to keep your browser page open because Wormhole won't store the files on their servers (they do up to 5GB)
Uploaded content is only available for 24 hours
A file can be downloaded up to 100 times

If you are curious, they share their roadmap here.

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Conclusion

This is a new service, but it has already found a place in my online toolkit. Obviously, the long-term viability will depend on some time of premium service, but there aren't any details yet. I guess that the premium service will allow larger transfers, longer storage and more download slots.

The security write-up (here) seems interesting, and the product looks to be designed securely. Still, because it is not open-source, there is no way to be sure they have implemented the security controls they say they have. If something is very sensitive, encrypt it using 7-zip before uploading (using a unique password shared with the recipient out of band).

Don't buy a Bitcasa subscription

May 26, 2014technologyEdward Kiledjian

A question I receive regularly from readers is regarding the value of the Bitcasa service.

I was an early Bitcasa beta tester and have been working with their service for a long time now. I actually bought into their service when they still offered unlimited cloud storage for $99 a year. At the time, I could not believe the incredible value they were offering but like everything else in life "if something is too good to be true, it probably is".

The client

I performed a long term test on both Windows and Mac. I hate hate hate their client. It is clunky, buggy and fixes come in a very slow trickle. As an example, the ability to mirror a folder by right clicking in the Mac Finder is broken and there is no ETA to fix it. Early in the service's life, I was able to mirror external drives and that functionality went away. I have 30Mbps down and 10Mbps up connection speed and everything transfers super fast to Google Drive, Dropbox, Box, etc. Not so with Bitcasa. Even with an idle computer, it sometimes takes hours to upload 5-10 MB.

I have the same speed issue with the mobile client (Android and IOS). I open a folder containing pictures and it takes forever for the app to download the thumbnails. Google Plus Photos and Carousel (Dropbox) on the same devices are almost instant.

The speed

The service is slow. Painfully slow and you will notice it. I'm not sure why but it just makes for a horrible client experience. Web interface is slow, mobile clients are slow and their desktop clients are slow.

Price

At $99 a year for unlimited storage, you could easily accept many of the shortcomings but the new pricing (for new customers) is $99 a year for 1TB. At that price, I say go with Google Drive's 1TB plan for $9 a month. Much faster and they will autoAwesome your images.

Verdict

I really had high hopes for Bitcasa. I thought it would be the crazy one that shook up the entire cloud storage market but instead it has turned (in my humble opinion) to be a dud. My only recommendation is look elsewhere. Options are Google Drive (good speed and pricing), Bitcasa Sync (your own sync service run from your house), or something like The Transporter (again a private sync service based on your home equipment).

BitTorrent Sync is my favorite sync tool

August 30, 2013technologyEdward Kiledjian

If I told you I am using BitTorrent, you would probably assume I am downloading pirated illegal content but your would be wrong. I have been testing BitTorrent Sync as an alternative to Dropbox and am really liking it.

BitTorrent sync leverages all the power of its world renown bittorrent protocol to quickly sync files of any size between your devices without first uploading them to a central cloud service making this very attractive to security conscious IT users.

You install a small app for your device (Windows, Mac, Android or IOS) and then choose a folder you would like to sync. The app then gives you a secret key (2 actually: one for read/write and the other is read only).

You can also create a one time secret key (good for 24 hours).

You then install BitTorrent Sync on the second device (anywhere as long as it is internet connected), you enter the secret key, Choose the destination folder and the rest is automatic.

Synchronization is done device to device over a secure and protected channel. Because the transfer is done over the robust and tested BitTorrent protocol, it can handle insanely large files quickly and reliably.

"All the traffic between devices is encrypted with AES cypher and a 256-bit key created on the base of the secret—a random string (20 bytes or more) that is unique for every folder." - BitTorrent

The use of the BitTorrent protocol also means that it will work through most security devices automatically.

Mobile to Mobile Sync

I can also share files from a mobile device to another mobile device very easily. I open the mobile app, and go to the Send Files tab, Choose the files and it generates a QR code. You can the QR code with the other device and voila, the files transfer like magic. No bumping, shacking or emailing.

The limitations:

The one major limitation right now (keep in mind it is beta) is that it does not support corporate proxy servers but the company assures me this is coming
If you choose a 2 ways sync, any change on either side syncs to the other device. If both people change the same file at the same time, the last one to save takes precedent and overwrites the other devices file (not a collaboration tool where multiple people can work on the same file).It is important to note that BitTorrent sync supports versioning and keeps all file changes for 30 days in a hidden folder).

Is BitTorrent Sync worth it?

BitTorrent Sync is a product I would pay money for but is free. BitTorrent says they will launch a premium version later with additional value add options for companies (leaving the current version free for consumers).

So far it has successfully worked every time (even when I threw a 800GB folder at it with a 500MB file).

Comparing BitTorrent Sync to Dropbox

BitTorrent Sync is better and worse than Dropbox.

It is better than Dropbox because

your files are never stores on someone else's servers (more secure and no transfer limits)
files of any size can be synchronized
files are synchronized quickly and easily
it's free

It is worse than Dropbox because

every computer needs the BitTorrent client installed (Dropbox offers a web interface)

BitTorrent Sync

Wormhole could be the free file transfer app Firefox Send wanted to be