Disasters come in many forms. There are natural disasters such as earthquakes, hurricanes, tornados or fire. Then there are also manmade problems such as cyber-attacks, equipment accidents or planned destruction.
Disaster planning must look at all aspects of getting your business up and running after a major threat. This could include communicating with clients, vendors, and employees to let them know that things are being handled and that their information is safe.
Preparing for a disaster starts with the creation of recovery plans designed to get you back in business with the least amount of downtime as possible.
Cyber Attacks
Cyber-attacks such as ransomware can lock up your data and demand a ransom be paid to release the files (here is one of our previous blogs which talks about ransomware – https://10xcg.com/Blog/ArtMID/441/ArticleID/14/How-Can-My-Business-Reduce-the-Risk-of-Ransomware). A clean backup of your data can get your business back to work quickly and efficiently when dealing with a situation such as ransomware.
What is a Backup?
A Backup is an up-to-date copy of your company files that will be used to restore your data in case of damage or loss. The original data is not deleted after a backup is made, it is basically a copy of your data that is stored in a secure location off-premises and/or in the cloud. The length of time between your last backup and now expands the amount of lost information you may have to recreate manually.
One of the foremost points in recovering from a disaster is having your data regularly backed up. This backup should also be off-site. Having a backup of your data at your primary location doesn’t help in the case of physical destruction.
A complete backup of your data allows you to begin again from the date of the backup. Backups should be performed often and regularly. Nightly backups transmitted to an off-site location are the safest, most secure means of recovering from a disaster.
At 10X Consulting Group, we provide backup services for many types of different businesses, including government facilities.
Backup vs Archive – What is the Difference?
Archived data is not normally used for disaster recovery but often is necessary for researching or referencing the past. Most commonly, it is used to find specific items from the distant past. Example: a small file containing an important item, such as a signed client or vendor contract.
When you backup business files, it should include all of your archived items as well.
How Can I Protect My Business?
Modern IT systems make disaster recovery so much easier than ever before. Imagine trying to recreate production records, customer lists, invoices, vendor lists and bills, personnel records, etc. if they were all stored on-site (and were destroyed by accident, fire, flood, theft, ransomware, etc.) with no recent backups! It could be a real nightmare and cause you to lose thousands of dollars in your business. For others, it could even mean closing the doors of their business for good, and even open themselves up to lawsuits.
When designing your disaster recovery plan, it is very important to work with professionals like our team at 10X before you begin. Restoring data from a backup file may look easy, but unless this data is indexed in a coherent manner, the recovery itself could be the disaster and useless! Computers store information but it is humans who need to access it.
At 10X Consulting Group, our main goal is to get your data backed up and securely, that way you can get back to business as quickly as possible after a disaster. Let us help you start and develop your Disaster Recovery Plan, before disaster strikes!
Contact us by calling 704-931-1056 or e-mail: Sales@10xcg.com