backup

13 Myths about Backup: Busted

Misconception #1: We can recover from a data disaster.

Indeed, most likely not, especially if you lack a comprehensive disaster recovery strategy. According to Datto’s data-protection specialists, 94% of firms fail after a disaster if they do not have a business continuity strategy (BCP).

 

 

Even among those who do have a BCP, the statistics are not encouraging. According to a Gartner survey from 2010, 43 percent of organizations who faced a big data loss went out of business right afterwards. Almost half of the enterprises that survived the first two years also collapsed during the next two years.

 

Myth #2: Anti-malware software will keep our data safe.

Really? Even if your servers are overburdened? Even if your entire building is destroyed by fire? What if files or whole directories are destroyed by mistake?

 

Anti-malware/virus software is an essential initial line of protection against some forms of assaults. But, it will not save you in every crisis event. Even ransomware may infiltrate your computers and encrypt your data without being detected by anti-malware software. Regardless of your other cybersecurity procedures, backing up your data is critical due to a broad range of additional risks.

 

Misconception #3: People do not make errors.

Explain that to the IT guy who is continually restoring data for the employee who is continuously deleting crucial spreadsheets, client information, and Word documents. Tell that to the hospital that recently lost all of its patient data in a ransomware assault because a Payroll employee clicked on a phishing email.

 

The point is that even the finest among us make expensive errors. Accidents occur. The bulk of outage situations, according to Datto, are caused by human error.

 

So the issue is, how much time and money are you ready to give up if such accidents happen to you? If you’re utilizing an old BCDR system, each of those seemingly little errors is certainly costing the organization a fortune. And it’s only a matter of time before a massive blunder causes irreversible damage.

 

Misconception #4: We have backups. We will always be able to recover.

Backups are just the beginning of the BCDR process. Just because you have them doesn’t imply they’ll be recoverable or available in a reasonable amount of time. How do you know the recovery will be successful? Conventional backup techniques, such as tape, have a high failure rate.

 

How long will it take to retrieve everything, even if you can? Have you lately checked or verified your RTO to ensure its accuracy? If you don’t use the correct technology, a full recovery might take much longer than you expected. Moreover, given that each hour of system downtime costs the typical small business $8,581 per hour, underestimating your recovery time is a prescription for disaster.

 

Misconception #5: It’s alright since it’s in the cloud.

Cloud backups may be a good idea, but it all relies on the systems and services you use. How do you ensure your cloud backups aren’t compromised with the same virus that brought your on-premises systems down? How frequently are files transmitted to the cloud? How long will it take to recover? What happens if your cloud provider goes down?

 

All of these are important things to consider before backing up to the cloud. Not all cloud storage choices are created equal. On the contrary, some are much superior to others. Try using a hybrid backup strategy that allows you to backup both locally and in the cloud for increased safety, as well as virtualize backups from anywhere.

 

Myth #6: Our server room is completely secure.

Some people, believe it or not, believe this. Who knows if they’ve built special fire-suppression systems or added extra padlocks to the server-room door. Whatever the explanation, this way of thinking is quite shortsighted!

 

To begin with, physical protections around your infrastructure will be ineffective in the event of a cyberattack or when an employee inadvertently crashes your business-critical apps.

 

Second, all gadgets ultimately fail. They all have a life expectancy. This is why you should back up to numerous locations so that if one file storage device fails, you can still retrieve the data elsewhere.

 

Take a look at this article!: How Technology Is Changing How We Interact With People

 

Myth #7: Business data backup is too costly.

BCDR, like any other technological installation, is an investment. As the figures are crunched, it becomes evident that protecting your data with today’s top business continuity solutions is significantly less expensive than not having a solution at all.

 

It just takes one disruptive incident to bring a company to its knees. When you include lost income, lost data, disrupted operations, broken equipment, legal/compliance obligations, harmed client relationships, harmed corporate reputation, and wasted resources, the costs spiral out of control.

 

As previously said, a single hour of downtime caused by ransomware may cost a small organization upwards of $9000. An attack on a larger company can potentially cost millions of dollars.

 

Your company data backup system almost pays for itself by averting even one such disaster.

 

Misconception #8: My company is too tiny to require it.

Alright, maybe you don’t need BCDR if you catch fish for a living and sell it at a market stand. But, if your organization involves data in any way—any files with worth or importance that would cause a disturbance if they were suddenly lost—then you must take data backup seriously.

 

Indeed, there’s no need to invest in a huge corporate BCDR system if you’re a tiny organization. Yet, with the correct implementation, you can obtain enterprise-grade security at a price that small enterprises can afford.

 

Whatever you do, don’t think you’re too little to be affected by a large data loss.

 

Myth #9: The company is too large to fail.

This is the inverse of Myth #8. Medium to big organizations, particularly those undergoing rapid expansion, frequently fail to handle data risks because no one has time to think about them. They’re overly preoccupied with the “here and now,” rather than the possible dangers of “tomorrow.” Yet when a firm expands swiftly in all directions, everyone expects that reliable data backups are already in place, when they are not.

 

This demonstrates the need of not only having backup systems, but also thinking about business continuity in advance as part of a continuous continuity plan. To put it another way, you can’t simply install a backup appliance and call it a day. You must devise a strategy.

To genuinely avoid and lessen the devastation caused by an unexpected calamity, you must engage on continuity planning on a regular basis. This includes establishing a recovery team, reevaluating your business continuity strategy, defining your continuity objectives, conducting risk/impact assessments, identifying system flaws, and continuously selecting the best backup technology for your company’s needs.

 

Myth number ten: We utilize Microsoft 365. We don’t require data backup.

Again, incorrect.

 

M365 files are still subject to a variety of data-loss situations. These might be deleted by mistake. They are vulnerable to ransomware and other infections. If licenses are allowed to expire mistakenly, they might be permanently removed. These can be overridden if a migration fails. They can be tainted by improper integration with third-party software.

 

The list is endless.

As we discussed in Myth #5, assuming that data saved in the cloud cannot be lost is risky. Because this data is kept on Microsoft’s servers, it cannot be erased! In reality, data suggest that it occurs frequently. According to a Backupify survey, 37% of small to medium-sized organizations have lost data saved in SaaS programs like as Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace.

 

This highlights the need of utilizing a dedicated SaaS backup service in addition to a BCDR solution for your local servers and endpoints.

 

 

Myth #11: Our backups are instantaneously recoverable.

This is dependent on the type of business data backup you use. Because, if you’re using outdated technology, it’s possible that your backups will take hours or even days to restore, especially if you need to reconstruct the backup from a chain of incrementals.

 

Yet, current BDCR solutions can recover the necessary files and systems in a matter of seconds. Individual files and folders, for example, may be restored with a few clicks using Datto. Moreover, backups may be started as virtual computers in seconds, providing near-instant access to secured systems, apps, and information. Even in widespread ransomware outbreaks, encrypted data may be swiftly returned to normal utilizing the Fast Rollback function, eliminating the need to reimage the entire computer.

 

Don’t expect your current backup methods to rapidly recover lost data. As we discussed in Myth #4, it’s a good idea to assess your deployments on a regular basis to ensure they’re in line with your recovery goals.

 

Myth #12: Ransomware is on the decline.

This is absolutely not the case.

 

The frequency of ransomware attacks has changed in recent years. But, there are no indicators that it will go away anytime soon. Just the contrary, in fact. According to Computer Weekly, there were more ransomware assaults in the first quarter of 2022 than in the entire year of 2021. At this pace, 2022 will be one of the worst years for ransomware in history.

 

This is just another reason why all enterprises must constantly assess their backup systems to ensure they provide enough security against these data-destroying assaults.

 

Myth #13: Our backups are safe against ransomware.

Are you certain about that?

 

No backup system is totally safe from ransomware. Furthermore, merely having a backup does not ensure that you will be able to restore your lost data promptly.

 

Ransomware-infected data are often backed up alongside all of your other files. This does not necessarily imply that your whole backup will be affected. But, unless you have earlier recovery points to pick from, you will be unable to restore those data without a decryption key.

 

Consider that emerging variants of ransomware are increasingly tailored to target backups explicitly. Thus, if you store those backups on the network or in a way that the ransomware can access them, those backups are at great danger of being destroyed.

 

Backup storage and security are critical for preventing them from being hacked. Yet, while no system is immune to an attack, certain BCDR systems provide significantly higher security than others.

 

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