We live in a digital age where data has become one of the most valuable commodities in the world, making it crucial to have backup strategies in place to prevent data loss. Businesses collect huge volumes of data every day, and this data plays a critical role in their day-to-day operations. Without effective backup strategies, business organizations are more likely to lose their data, and the consequences can be quite catastrophic.
Businesses can experience data loss in many ways, ranging from natural disasters to cyberattacks as well as plain, old-fashioned human error. Should you suffer an unexpected data loss, your competitive advantage lies in how quickly you can get your operation back up and running without experiencing major downtime.
Why Do You Need Data Backup?
Before we look at the different ways of backing up data, you need to know why your business requires data backup. Businesses commonly encounter the following data security threats to data in their everyday operations.
- Human error: Human error still plays a major role in data loss. According to Verizon, as much as 30 percent of data loss incidents are caused by internal actors. This could be attributed to anything from poor password practices to falling for phishing scams.
- Hardware issues: Mishaps originating from hardware issues play a major role in business data loss. With traditional data storage methods, data is stored in a physical location on hard drives and backup appliances. Any hardware issues arising in these devices can pose a serious threat to your valuable data.
- Natural disasters: Natural disasters such as floods, fire, earthquakes, and the like pose a big threat to the traditional form of data storage and security that is either on local machines, servers, or in hard copies. Do you have what it takes to bounce back if these disasters catch you off guard and wipe out your company’s data?
- Cyberattacks: As technology evolves, cyberattacks continue to evolve as well. The growing threat of ransomware is a testament to that. According to the latest Verizon report, 27 percent of malware incidents can be attributed to ransomware attacks. While antimalware and antivirus programs can certainly offer protection, the best protection comes from being prepared. Business leadership needs to plan for the worst, thinking about what might happen in the event of an unavoidable security breach and related data loss when formulating a data security strategy.
Data loss can happen to any organization irrespective of their size or the security precautions they take. What will set you apart is a solid data backup solution to make sure that your compromised data is not completely unrecoverable.
How to Back Up Your data
When planning for storing your data, both cloud backup and on-site backup appliances need to be considered. This is because both have their own advantages and limitations. On-site storage devices are faster, giving organizations full control over their data. However, they are prone to physical mishaps and hardware issues. Cloud-based backup, on the other hand, is not vulnerable to natural disasters, but does require a lot of bandwidth to backup large files.
The ideal backup strategy is one that combines both these approaches, with multiple copies stored in different locations. When it comes to backing up your data, you need to consider the 3-2-1 rule.
- 3 – total copies of your data, including one production copy
- 2 – backup copies on two different media (i.e. internal hard drive and removable storage media)
- 1 – off-site (cloud) copy
Newer variations of this rule suggest having at least two copies (3-2-2 rule) on the cloud depending on the importance of your data. Ultimately, the more copies you make, the higher your chances of recovery after a loss. On the other hand, its best not to go crazy with backup copies, to ensure you do not have too many locations to keep track of and keep secure.
Advantages of BCDR Over File-Only Backups
Best Practices for Data Backup
While incorporating an effective backup strategy, you need to implement the following best practices to limit data loss:
- Increase frequency: Digitally run businesses are required to back up their data multiple times a day. Doing it once a day, at the end of business hours, is no longer sufficient.
- Use cloud backup: The cloud has become an indispensable component of data. Cloud backup comes with a multitude of benefits such as easy recovery, easy scalability, better cost efficiency and more.
- Use the power of automation: When you automate your disaster recovery process, you can bounce back from serious disasters and continue business operations without suffering as much downtime.
- Determine your retention span: Retaining all data backup versions forever is not a feasible solution for most small businesses. You need to determine the duration for which you will retain your data, the requirements of which will vary based on your industry, needs and compliance regulations.
To Sum Up…
Backup should be a part of every organization’s business strategy, irrespective of its size, location, or industry. Threats to business data are very real and are happening at an alarming rate. Some of these very real consequences of not having your business data backed up include loss of revenue from missed deadlines, lost sales, and project delays, legal liability if you fail to protect certain sensitive data, as well as reputational damage. A solid data backup plan could be the preventative measure that saves your business when disaster strikes.
Talk to us today so we can help you zero in on an effective backup strategy that’s tailor-made for you.
