Your backup software probably isn’t providing what you need.
I know that’s a strong statement.
But it’s rooted in reality.
Too many companies think that their data is safe because they’re using a backup tool. But their data is actually in peril, which could spell disaster for their business.
You see, a backup tool doesn’t automatically mitigate your risk. It’s possible to pay for well-known backup software, only to lose important information to a server crash or cybercriminals. A backup solution doesn’t equal a robust backup and business continuity methodology.
Does your organization have what it needs? Here are 7 questions I want you to consider…
1. Do you have a way to monitor your backup software?
Investors use diversification to reduce risk. And at Proactive IT, we diversify too.
Our philosophy is never trust a single source to verify data backups.
It’s risky to rely on your backup software to notify you of problems. A Silent Bad Actor could tamper with your tool—and you’d never know it. You need a methodology that confirms your backups are actually working.
2. Do you have onsite and offsite backups?
Does your business rely on a cloud backup tool? If this is your only means for saving data, that’s a problem.
Solely using cloud backups exposes your organization to a big gap between downtime and recovery. Solely using onsite backups leaves your data exposed to natural disasters and physical theft.
Your organization needs onsite and offsite storage.
If your budget allows, we’d even recommend geographical redundancy—increasing your protection with two offsite locations for your backups.
3. Are your onsite backups hardened against ransomware?
Let’s say that the bad guys launch a ransomware attack on your network.
If your backups are stored on an external drive on your network, they will be vulnerable too.
Our practice is to isolate your onsite backup devices from your main network. This makes it difficult for malicious software to detect these devices and infect your data.
4. Are you backing up your entire IT system or your data only?
Does your backup software only make copies of your data (data-only backups)? Or does it take a snapshot of your entire IT system, including your servers (image-based backups).
With a data-only backup, you’ll preserve all your files—but not your IT system.
Should you experience a crash, you can access documents, customer records, and other important information. However, you’ll lose your operating system, settings, and configurations. So recovering from downtime may take longer than you expected.
5. Do your backup software and hardware support your recovery time objective?
Your recovery time objective (RTO) is how long your business can afford to be without its computers and/or key applications.
Does what you have reflect your organization’s RTO?
If you have a short RTO, you need the right kind of backups and the hardware necessary to virtualize them. With a powerful backup solution, we can failover and help your business recover from downtime in as little as 15 minutes.
6. Can you meet your recovery point objective?
Your recovery point objective (RPO) is how much data you can afford to lose.
Does the frequency of your backups reflect your RPO?
If you need to restore your IT systems, are you comfortable using last month’s backup, last week’s backup, yesterday’s backup, or a more recent copy?
For example, if your RPO is 24 hours, a backup that occurs once a week is simply not sufficient.
7. Is your backup software aligned with your data retention goal?
Does your business need to retain years of records for tax purposes, medical compliance, or another reason?
In the event of a crash, you want backups that go far enough into the past.
Your solution should reflect your business requirements. If your backup software is only saving five years of data when you need seven years, that’s a problem.
What’s next?
Are you comfortable with your current backup solution?
Or have these questions exposed issues you weren’t aware of?
If your business doesn’t have what it needs, you’re not alone. Our team is ready to help you close any gaps and mitigate your risk.
To get in touch, contact us at info@weareproactive.com or 704-464-3075 extension 3.
Dedicated to IT security and productivity,
– Steve
About Steve Kennen
Steve Kennen is the President of Proactive IT and an expert in information technology infrastructure management, cybersecurity, and cyber risk management practices for businesses. A seasoned entrepreneur and technology veteran with over 25 years of experience, Steve leads the team that keeps our clients secure and their business operations running smoothly.