Most of today’s businesses know that it is vital to make a backup of data and program files that you don’t keep on premise. To meet this need, companies may use portable hard drives, thumb drives, laptops, or other storage media. There is a better way.
Most of today’s businesses know that it is vital to make a backup of data and program files that you don’t keep on premise. To meet this need, companies may use portable hard drives, thumb drives, laptops, or other storage media.
Backups in this manner are awkward and generally require that a trusted IT employee or a member of management take the device with them until the next business day. There is a huge problem with this solution – many significant data breaches have been traced to portable devices. It doesn’t take much to forget a thumb drive at a restaurant or have a laptop stolen from a car. If thieves get hold of your data the chances are some, if not all, your customers will be the victim of identity theft.
Consequences of Lost Backup Devices
If sensitive data is breached, either personal identifying information or personal financial information, the law likely requires you to notify the affected parties. This is bad for business and it is likely you will lose customers and have problems finding new ones.
So, what is the best solution for backup and data recovery? Many experts believe that the cloud offers a great solution. Let’s look at what supports their position.
Using the Cloud for Backup and Disaster Recovery
The cloud offers some unique features for Backup and Disaster Recovery (BDR). They include:
No Need to Sync Between Devices
There are many large vendors now in the cloud as BDR space. They include:
- Google Drive
- Azure by Microsoft (particular for businesses)
- OneDrive by Microsoft
- Drop Box
- More
What these and other vendors offer is a secure offsite place to automatically store and archive documents, images, blueprints, and more.
The best feature of these providers is that you can automatically direct your computers and computing devices to automatically save to the cloud. The files and programs used by your company are stored in the cloud and can be accessed via the internet from anywhere at any time – all employees need is the password and other identification used in Two Factor Authorization (2FA).
Security
Vendors who store your data in the cloud have robust security and challenge even the most accomplished of cyber criminals. However, the one vulnerability in cloud security that can be mitigated by your company is the theft of a device where the user has not signed out. However, by incorporating 2FA and auto sign out if a device is not used for ten minutes lessen risks tremendously.
Instant Access
Uh-oh, you went to a client meeting and forgot your flash drive. This is not a big deal when you use the cloud. All pertinent information for your sales presentation is neatly stored in a file called “Sales Presentation” with individual files marked by date. Connect to the internet and all your information for the presentation is immediately at hand.
For more information on how your business can prosper using an IT managed services provider for cloud backup and data recovery contact Alliance Technology Partners in Chesterfield. (314) 391-9888 or info@alliancetechpartners.com today.
