Dropbox has announced a handful of new features for consumers and business users as the cloud storage and productivity platform seeks to capitalize on the remote working boom. The company also announced that a new family plan is in the works that will cover up to six members of a household and allocate individual accounts and logins under a single subscription.
With work and home life blurring for millions of people during lockdown, Dropbox is targeting users across the spectrum with today’s updates. The company is also doubling down on efforts to lure free users onto its paid plans.
First up, the San Francisco-based company is launching a new password management service called Dropbox Passwords, the result of an acquisition it made last year with little fanfare. Last November, Dropbox snapped up Massachusetts-based Valt, which sunsetted its apps ahead of integration with Dropbox.
Similar to other password managers, Dropbox Passwords stores and encrypts users’ online passwords, and it syncs them across all devices to make it easier to log into websites and apps. This requires a separate Dropbox Passwords app, which was quietly launched a couple of weeks back, but it will be available to paid subscribers who log in with their Dropbox credentials.
Above: Dropbox Passwords
A new feature called Dropbox Vault promises to help users securely share access to specific files. The Vault folder sits alongside other files and folders on Dropbox, but it can be protected behind a dedicated PIN code and can only be opened from Dropbox.com and the Dropbox mobile app — the files contained within Dropbox Vault are not stored locally on a user’s desktop.
Above: Dropbox Vault
Finally, Dropbox is also rolling out a new computer backup feature that automatically creates backups of PC or Mac files stored on the desktop, as downloads, or in document folders. These are continuously synced, so if you lose your laptop you will always have a backup stored in the cloud.
Above: Dropbox computer backup tool
All three of these consumer-focused features are available in beta for new Dropbox Plus users on mobile today, and they will be coming to all Dropbox Plus subscribers “in the coming weeks.” The computer backup feature is also available to Dropbox Basic and Professional users from today.
Arguably, one of the most long-awaited Dropbox features for consumers is the Family Plan — this will be made available to Dropbox Plus users in the coming weeks before coming to all Dropbox users later in the year. Essentially, it allows families to share 2 terabytes of storage between individual profiles, with all members able to create “shared spaces” for content such as photos, videos, and documents.
Dropbox confirmed that its Family Plan will cost $17 per month when billed annually or $20 when billed on a month-to-month basis.
Above: Dropbox Family
In the enterprise realm, Dropbox announced it would also embed HelloSign’s e-signature technology as a native feature within Dropbox, more than year after acquiring the company for $230 million. In effect, this makes HelloSign the default e-signature tool for Dropbox.
Finally, Dropbox is introducing a new Dropbox App Center, which serves as a centralized hub for all the tools and integrations from partner organizations, including Slack, Google, and Zoom. The App Center is currently available to a “subset of users” in beta, with more than 40 app partners featured for the inaugural rollout.
Nova Scotia court ruling orders province to better protect endangered species
Justice Christa Brothers says in a ruling issued Friday there has been a ‘chronic and systemic failure’ to take action required under the Endangered Species Act
HALIFAX — The Nova Scotia Supreme Court says the province failed to meet its duty to protect species at risk, and it is ordering the minister of lands and forestry to fulfil his obligations.
Justice Christa Brothers says in a ruling issued Friday there has been a “chronic and systemic failure” to take action required under the Endangered Species Act.
Brothers cites a 2016 report by the provincial auditor general, a followup report by the department on the auditor’s recommendations in 2018 and the 2018 Lahey Report on forestry practices to back her conclusion.
The ruling is the result of a judicial review application by the Federation of Nova Scotia Naturalists, the Blomidon Naturalists Society, the Halifax Field Naturalists and wildlife biologist Bob Bancroft that was heard last fall.
The groups argued that Lands and Forestry Minister Iain Rankin has failed to meet requirements under the act, including requirements to devise and implement recovery plans for species at risk, create recovery teams and identify core habitats.
They cited six animal and plant species as examples — the mainland moose, Canada warbler, eastern wood pewee, wood turtle, ram’s head lady’s slipper and black ash.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 1, 2020.
The Canadian Press
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