@SweetieJean wrote:
Online works best for those who are new to taxes. It can also be accessed from anywhere with internet service, and one does not have to worry about losing data stored on a desktop during a computer crash.
Cloud storage means "someone else's hard drive", and you are at their mercy.
Three examples:
1. When Amazon canceled the accounts of some 30 or so shoppers who were found to have engaged in review farming, this also canceled and deleted all their legitimate electronic media purchases (movies, books, music) without backup, refund or recourse.
2. When Apple Music was first launched, it would search subscribers' computers to see what music they had, back it up to the cloud, then delete it from their computers to save local storage space. However, some customers found that rare tracks, demos, and alternate versions were replaced with the "official" version without their permission, and some members had their own original compositions deleted and replaced with commercial tracks with similar names.
3. If you file online with a paid version of Turbotax online, it used to be that your tax return was only freely downloadable for 2 years. After that, you had to either pay for access, either by continuing to use a paid version of Turbotax, or by paying an access fee. I don't know if that behavior has been changed or not.
Cloud storage is someone else's hard drive, and that someone may not have your best interests in mind.
