Why Data Backup is so important for your Business

Importance of Backing Up Your Business Data

Data backup is the process of creating a copy of your data and storing it in a separate location from your primary data storage. The primary purpose of data backup is to protect your data from loss, corruption, or theft.

Backing up your business data is essential for several reasons and include:

• Protection against Data Loss
  Data loss can occur due to several reasons, including hardware failure, cyber attacks, accidental fire/flooding or natural disasters. A data backup provides a safety net in case of data loss, allowing you to restore your lost data to its previous state.
• Compliance Requirements
  Several industries have regulations that require businesses to have a backup and recovery plan in place. For example, healthcare organisations must comply with the Privacy Act 1988, which mandates the security, backup, and recovery of patient data.
• Business Continuity
  Data loss can lead to significant disruption to your business operations, resulting in lost revenue, productivity, and customer trust. Having a backup plan in place ensures that your business can continue to operate in the event of a data loss.In summary, backing up your business data is essential for protecting your data from loss, complying with industry regulations, and ensuring business continuity.

What are the common threat vectors for data security?

The best way to demonstrate just how important it is to have a backup of your business and personal data is to explore a couple of scenarios that would have you reaching for that backup in no time.

Some of them involve bad actors. Others involve a lack of investment in hardware. But they all make it perfectly clear why it’s such a good idea to have a copy of your data.

Hard drive failure

While there might be data that suggest that, with a careful choice of hard drives, you can get an annual hard drive failure rate of around 2%, that number would be of no consolation to you if your hard drive failed and lost you all your data. Quite the contrary. And in most cases, around 70% of them, damaged recording surfaces will be the cause of the failure.

Data loss due to human error

Arguably the best-known example of human error that caused an almost catastrophic loss of data happened in the animation company Pixar. A command just over a dozen-characters long almost deleted the whole Toy Story 2 animated movie. Backup data was there to save the day, luckily, but it serves as a stark reminder of the possible consequences of our fallibility.

Data breaches

The fact that you have a small business doesn’t protect you from data breaches. It makes you more vulnerable and less capable of recovering. A fifth of all small businesses has reported a data breach in the last two years. Four of ten would say the breach cost them over $50k to recover from. And given consumer trends that show people don’t want to do business with companies that were breached, you get to see how big of a problem this can be.

Viruses and ransomware

We’re in a sad situation when whole cities have to declare a state of emergency due to ransomware attacks. These attacks will lock away your resources, including your data, and keep you from accessing them until you’ve paid the ransom. Ransomware is up 33% on mobile devices, as are new types of attacks such as form jacking.

How to improve data security with backups?

It should be clear by now that there are people out there — whole organisations, in fact — who want your data. The number of groups who use destructive malware in their pursuits is on the rise, and they’re counting on you to either have weak or outdated forms of protection or to be a plain sitting duck, waiting to get hit.

The best way to approach data security is to layer one security measure and process upon the other and make sure to include data backup in the mix.

Type of Backups

There are several types of data backup, and you can pick one that’s best suited to your needs.

• Full data backup
  The type of data backup that offers the best protection by copying the full set of data. On the downside, however, this type of protection can be resource intensive.
• Incremental Backup
  Incremental backup, every backup after the first one is smaller and reflects only the changes in data. That makes it less demanding on resources while backing up, but time-consuming when you need to restore data, and highly dependent on the integrity of the whole backup chain.
• Differential Backup
  Differential backup works in a similar way to incremental backup, but it trades the low storage space of incremental backup for faster recovery time. So, if you have lots of space and want quick recovery, this is the better option of the two.
• Mirror Backup
  Mirror backup changes the data as you do. Everything you delete gets deleted from the mirror, too. This is a double-edged sword, obviously, because it saves space and keeps the backup up to date but doesn’t protect from accidental deletion

How does offsite backup work?

Last, but not least, you need to be incredibly careful in choosing where you back up your files. Any threat that might compromise your system could also compromise the backup if it’s stored on the same physical drive. That’s one of the reasons why offsite backup is such a good idea.

Offsite backup can come in one of a couple of forms. Storing data on an external physical drive or a different computer is an offsite backup. But so is backing up data in the cloud, using online services, and having a managed backup service.

Whatever takes data from your drives and moves it to another drive is an offsite backup. It protects you by putting the data behind a whole other set of security measures. Even if you are breached, your offsite backup stays safe because it’s not a part of your system.

Cloud Backup Pros and Cons

Cloud-based backup solutions store your data in a remote server maintained by the backup provider.

Cloud-based backup offers several advantages, including:

• Accessibility
  You can access your data from anywhere with an internet connection.
• Scalability
  Cloud based backup solutions can easily scale to meet your changing storage needs.
• Affordability
  Cloud-based backup solutions often have lower upfront costs than physical backup solutions.

However, cloud-based backup solutions also have some disadvantages, including:

• Dependence on the internet 
  Cloud based backup requires a stable and reliable internet connection to function.
• Security concerns
  Storing data in the cloud can raise security concerns, as you’re entrusting your data to a third party provider.
• Data Transfer Costs and Disk Space
  Cloud-based backup solutions often charge for data transfer and disk space, which can add up quickly for businesses with large amounts of data.

Physical Backup Pro and Cons

Physical backup solutions involve storing your data on physical devices, such as external hard drives, USB or NAS drives.

Physical backup offers several advantages, including:

• Control
  You have complete control over your data, as it’s stored in-house.
• Security
  Storing data on physical devices can offer a higher level of security than cloud-based backup solutions.
• No data transfer costs
  Physical backup solutions don’t charge for data transfer, making them a more cost-effective option for businesses with large amounts of data.

However, physical backup solutions also have some disadvantages, including:

• Susceptible to Theft
  With the physical data being stored in one location, any theft of computer equipment including the backups will be cataphoric.
• Vulnerability to physical disasters
  Storing your data on physical devices can make it vulnerable to natural disasters, such as floods or fires.
• Accessibility
  Physical backup solutions can be less accessible than cloud based backup solutions, as you need to be physically present to access your data if you are trying to backup or restore remotely.

Best Practices for Backing Up Your Business Data

Implementing a backup strategy for your business requires careful planning and execution. Here are some best practices for backing up your business data:

• Automate your backup process
  Automating your backup process ensures that your data is backed up regularly and consistently. Set a schedule for your backups to occur automatically at regular intervals, reducing the risk of human error.
• Test your backup and recovery plan
  Testing your backup and recovery plan ensures that your data can be restored in the event of a data loss. Regular testing ensures that your backup plan is up to date and effective.
• Consider offsite backup
  Storing your backup data in an offsite location ensures that your data is protected from physical disasters, such as floods or fires. Offsite backup also provides an additional layer of security against cyber attacks.
• Use encryption
  Encrypting your backup data ensures that it’s protected from unauthorised access. Encryption ensures that your data is safe both in transit and at rest.
• Document your backup process
  Documenting your backup process ensures that it’s repeatable and consistent. Documentation also ensures that your backup process can be easily understood and followed by other members of your team.

Implementing these best practices can help ensure that your business data is protected from loss, corruption, or theft.

Recovering from a Data Loss Scenario

Data recovery is the process of restoring your lost or corrupted data to its previous state.

Here are some steps you can do to recover from a data loss scenario:

• Identify the cause of the data loss
  Identifying the cause of the data loss is essential for determining the best approach to recovery. For example, if the data loss was due to a hardware failure, you may need to replace the faulty hardware before restoring your data.
• Determine the extent of the data loss
  Determining the extent of the data loss is essential for prioritising the recovery process. You may need to restore critical data first before restoring less important data.
• Restore your data from backup
  Restoring your data from backup is the most common approach to data recovery. You can restore your data from a full backup, incremental backup, or differential backup, depending on your backup strategy.
• Verify the integrity of the restored data
  Verifying the integrity of the restored data ensures that it’s free from corruption or errors. 
• Have a Recovery Plan and Document the Recovery Process
  Documenting the recovery process ensures that it’s repeatable and consistent. Documentation also provides a record of the recovery process for future reference.

Recovering from a data loss scenario can be challenging and stressful, but having a backup and recovery plan in place can help minimise the impact of data loss on your business.

Additional Measures to Protect Your Data

In addition to backing up your data, there are several other measures you can take to protect your data from loss or theft.

Here are some additional measures to consider:

• Implement strong security protocols
  Implementing strong security protocols ensures that your data is protected from cyber attacks. You can use firewalls, encryption, and access controls to secure your data.
• Train your employees
  Training your employees in data security best practices ensures that they’re aware of the risks and how to avoid them. Regular training and information can help prevent data breaches and cyber attacks.
• Use antivirus software
  Using antivirus software ensures that your data is protected from malware and other threats. Regularly updating your antivirus software ensures that it’s up to date and effective.
• Monitor your data
  Monitoring your data ensures that you’re aware of any unusual activity or potential threats. You can use data monitoring tools to track your data and alert you to any suspicious activity.
• Have a disaster recovery plan
  Having a disaster recovery plan in place ensures that your business can continue to operate in the event of a natural disaster or other catastrophic event. A disaster recovery plan should include procedures for data backup and recovery, as well as contingency plans for business operations.

Implementing these additional measures can help ensure that your data is protected from loss or theft.

Key takeaways

Backing up your business data is essential for protecting your data from loss, complying with industry regulations, and ensuring business continuity

Large multinationals, small and medium businesses, and even individuals cannot afford to overlook data security anymore. The internet isn’t out to get you, but it’s not a safe place, either.

There are people and organisation who’d like access to your data. Some need it so that they’re better able to serve you with ads. Others want it to steal from you or extort you. Either way, having a data backup system in place will ensure that, even if you get breached, you don’t have to worry about your data being lost.