Most businesses today rely on stored information to drive their decision-making processes and keep operations efficient. However, if that stored data is compromised, it can affect productivity and put clients at risk.
The business security landscape is constantly changing. Here are a few reliable tips that will teach you how to safely backup your company data.
Decide What Needs To Be Backed Up
When creating a backup strategy for your business, the first step is to decide what data should be prioritized. There are certain types of information your company should be backing up at all costs. Contracts, patents, and other types of intellectual property should be protected to ensure they don’t fall into the hands of the competition. Credentials and user data must also be protected to limit the potential for breaches and other security problems.
Create a 3-2-1 Backup Plan
Once you’ve decided what data to back up, you should create a structured plan that helps you organize your backups by date and relevancy. A 3-2-1 backup consists of 3 backups—2 onsite and 1 offsite. By taking this approach, you can ensure the integrity of your most important information.
Your onsite backups should be stored on separate media; for example, one on a hard drive and the other on an external flash drive. Just be aware that USB drives don’t have built-in encryption, so you must be sure you implement the necessary protection to guard your information from theft.
Use Geographically Diverse Storage Locations
When backing up your data offsite, it’s a good idea to consider where it’s going. You don’t want all of your most important files to be in a single location if there’s a fire, blackout, or natural disaster. Instead, consider using geographically diverse storage to reduce the chances of losing all your data simultaneously.
Geo-redundancy is crucial for continued operations. You can quickly bounce back when incidents occur by storing information across different locations. Diverse storage solutions will also help you recover essential data in the case of a ransomware attack.
Protect In-Transit Assets
Companies must ensure all their assets are protected while in transit. It’s easy for unauthorized individuals to gain access to physical devices and hardware while they’re being moved. To avoid this, you should consider hiring certified movers and ensure all devices are password-protected.
Good credential management is essential for preventing hardware intrusions. You should also avoid keeping all your data on a single device while moving it. You could lose critical assets if something unexpected happens and the equipment is damaged or destroyed.
Safeguard Data at All Costs
If your business relies significantly on data, losing it could be disastrous. However, knowing how to safely backup your company data will help keep you and your clients protected from threats.
