Friday, March 31st is World Backup Day, and given the many recent instances of data loss plaguing businesses big and small, no question is more relevant than, “What would you do if you lost it all?”
Data backups provide peace of mind by saving a second copy of important files: everything from client records to financial information to documents, emails, photos, and more. But many people think that backing up data to an external drive on your desk or a USB drive you carry with you is sufficient, when it isn’t — data loss is far more common than most people think, and all it takes is one storm, one coffee spill, one inadvertent device loss, or one accidental click on a malicious link to destroy all the data that is critical to your business.
At CMIT Solutions, we treat every day like World Backup Day — but we know that isn’t easy when you have to devote your day-to-day efforts to running and growing a company. So this week, consider the following questions and the following statistics that highlight the importance of secure backup in this day and age:
- Is your backup drive located next to your computer or in the same office?
- Has a natural or manmade disaster ever forced you to evacuate or vacate your office for any length of time?
- Do you have a plan in place to recover lost data and continue business operations in the event that a disaster does strike?
- FEMA and SBA studies show that 25% to 45% of businesses don’t reopen after a disaster
- Have you or one of your employees ever misplaced a laptop, jump drive, or smartphone?
- Are your mobile devices and connected accounts protected with strong passwords, fingerprint login, and/or two-factor authentication?
- A 2016 report found that more than 100 mobile phones are lost or stolen every minute
- Do you trust your important business data to a free (or cheap) backup solution that isn’t built for the business world?
- Have you ever struggled to locate your backed up information in iCloud, Google Drive, or OneDrive?
- Roughly half of data loss can be attributed to hardware or system malfunctions, while a third is due to simple human error
The major takeaway here? Data loss isn’t a matter of if, but when — and solid backups represent the safest insurance policy around. So rather than worrying what might happen if your business is faced with data loss, shouldn’t you use World Backup Day 2017 as the perfect motivator to start preparing for what you’ll do when it happens?
At CMIT Solutions, the following strategies comprise the bedrock of our remote, redundant, and regular data backup solution.
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Cybersecurity experts recommend an industry standard of 3-2-1 — 3 copies of your data stored in 2 locations backed up a minimum of 1 time per day.
This means the original version of your data, a local copy, and an off-site copy — think one computer or hard drive in the office, one network-connected backup, and one cloud storage solution that balances accessibility with security.
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For certain industries, all data must be encrypted from end to end, while at rest and in transit.
At CMIT Solutions, we rely on data encryption standards that match up with those employed by government and military agencies in more than 100 countries, along with the top 10 U.S. defense contractors. That means local, private encryption when data is on-site, SSL technology when transferring files, and AES-256-bit encryption when housed at an off-site location.
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Don’t forget about disaster recovery, business continuity, and virtualization plans.
The best data backup comes with a “set it and forget it” setting — your information is automatically backed up at least once a day without you having to lift a finger. At CMIT Solutions, we go above and beyond that baseline, however, making sure that recovery plans are tested and outlined and that all protocols for maintaining operations are in place in case emergency strikes.
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Make sure you have right partner by your side every step of the way.
That goes for selecting, purchasing, and installing software and hardware capable of withstanding any disaster; enjoying the best customer service on the planet backed by a 24/7 help desk and a continent-wide bench of technical experts; and for enjoying a little human intelligence to go along with your information technology infrastructure.
CMIT Solutions’ franchise partners have helped clients recover from earthquakes, floods, fires, hurricanes, and every other kind of disaster imaginable. Proper data backup and disaster recovery solutions take the guesswork out of security for your business, replacing what once was a stressful, do-it-yourself situation with easy, automatic processes.
Your customer data is essential to your company’s success, which is why at CMIT Solutions, we worry about backups so you don’t have to. Some IT companies only offer data backup a la carte, but we insist on protecting ALL of our clients’ data, which means that we always have your back. And when disaster strikes, we will work around the clock to help you recover the information that matters to you.
If you’d like to put that level of expertise to work for your business, contact us today.