DropBox VS Cryptominers
Just recently, Dropbox has announced its decision to discontinue its unlimited storage policy on the Dropbox Advanced plan. The decision came after the company noticed a surge in users exploiting the service for cryptocurrency mining purposes and for reselling the storage space to other users.
The unlimited storage offering had been a top feature of Dropbox for years. However, as cryptominers increasingly started to leverage this generous policy, the company felt the need for a change. One prominent example cited by Dropbox developers is the Chia cryptocurrency, a digital currency that depends significantly on storage capacity for its mining processes. This dependence has led miners to create combined storage vaults, pushing Dropbox's infrastructure to its limits.
To address this issue, Dropbox's Advanced plan will now come with a capped storage of 15TB, while each additional license will fetch an extra 5TB. Dropbox has been considerate of its regular users too. Those who have consumed less than 35TB will retain their existing storage and be granted an extra 5TB for the next five years without any added fees.
The company reassures that this transition will not be abrupt. Starting November 1, 2023, the changes will be rolled out slowly, with users receiving a minimum of 30 days' notice before the actual shift. This move reflects the ongoing challenge of balancing user demands with the unforeseen exploitation of services in the digital age.
