Growing data sets and increasingly sophisticated cyberattacks mean that data risk is at an all time high. With organisations taking weeks to get back to normal business operations, and some never recovering, being able to handle data loss effectively is paramount.

Online backup is an essential aspect for every business but is often overlooked. Backing up simply means making a copy of your data and storing it in a secondary location so that it’s ready to be restored if the original files are lost, damaged, or infected.

What can cause Data Loss?

There are many causes of data loss from simple human error to malware infecting your entire system.

We tend to save our files to one place on our machines – a ‘My Documents’ folder perhaps – but if a user were to accidentally delete that folder, the only copy of that data is gone. Equally, as we’ve seen countless times, malware and cyberattacks can wreak havoc and take months to recover from – think back to the 2017 WannaCry attack on the NHS which caused 7000 appointments to be cancelled affecting over a third of all trusts.

Without a backup solution, any data loss – no matter how big or small – can cause business downtime costing your business and affecting your reputation.

What data should I backup?

As a minimum you need your business critical information. What would you need to continue working if you couldn’t access your PC? Perhaps you’d need your clients’ contact details, your financial accounts, and your HR files.

Consider how long it has taken you to gather all this information. Could your business operate without access to it? Would your staff be able to work sufficiently? These are the questions you should ask when thinking about which data to backup.

How can I backup my data?

Physical backup methods – USBs, tape, DVDs etc. – are outdated. Whilst they’re better than no back up at all, they rely on human intervention to be efficient. They’re also insecure – easy to damage, easy to lose, and if anybody gets their hands on them, they’ve got their hands on all your data too.

Redstor Data Management

Redstor offers automatically scheduled, encrypted, and easy to use Cloud backup. It’s pioneering InstantData technology allows you to access your files in a near instant. With simplified billing and deployment, there’s a small predictable monthly cost, and you don’t need any new hardware.

The centralised management portal allows administrators to easily update the data selection or backup schedule, and complete manual backups if needed. With Redstor, you’re able to recover from data loss scenarios allowing your business to get back up and running quickly and easily.