Next Mac OS X to contain “safe deposit box” with automatic cloud backup?

Speculation about the likelihood of the new Mac OS X version containing a secure folder that would automatically upload copies of the files dropped in it into the cloud have sprung up all over the Internet.

According to the information contained in the recently revealed Apple’s application to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office – entitled “File Management Safe Deposit Box” – the OS X 10.7 Lion which is expected to be out in late October could have this feature.

The Safe Deposit Box is supposed to be an icon onto which the user can drag and drop a file and consider the file immediately secure from anyone who doesn’t possess the right username and password to open it. It is a solution similar to Apple’s FileVault – already present in the OS and encrypting and storing files on the fly.

But Safe Deposit Box will also be connected to cloud servers – run by Apple – where copies of those files will be backed up and secured as soon as they are dropped into the Box. This way, if something happens to the computer or its hard drive, the data isn’t lost forever. Access to those files would also be given after the user has provided the needed username and password.

According to Tuaw, the Box will also likely be used to store digital copies of items purchased through iTunes.