Off Site Data Storage Saves Businesses

The odds are 1 in 4 that you will lose all the data on your hard drive due to a virus, hacker or natural disaster, such as a fire, flood, or earthquake. Not only that, almost 50% of businesses that lose their data go out of business permanently, report industry analysts. You have a variety of choices for data backup, but they don’t all provide the same amount of data safety.

You might be backing up your files to a DVD or a CD, but these disks do not offer the security you might think they do. You might believe that the disk copied the files perfectly, but many times when you need the data, the files are corrupted or missing due to damaged disks or other technical failures. And if you do not perform the manual backup onto disk, hundreds of hours of work and files will still be lost. In addition to that, your backed up files on CD or DVD are at risk in case of theft because the files are not encrypted.

You might be one of many people and businesses backing up your data on a second hard drive or tape backup solution. Recovery of data is easy with these solutions if the hard drive or tape storage is not damaged or corrupted by the same lightning, flood or fire in which the original drive was damaged. And theft is an option as well. And some reports say that up to half of all attempts to recover data on tape backups do fail.

The best way to keep your backups current and safe is to utilize offsite data backup services that specialize in keeping your files automatically backed up and secure until you need them. Off site data storage and recovery involves a few simple steps:

Local Software Installation

First you’ll install a small application that interfaces with the backup server of the online data backup provider. The program can take up to 30 minutes to install and set up.

Initial Backup of Entire System

Second, backing up files of this sort requires a fast connection, such as with a cable modem, DSL line or a T1 line. Third, schedule a complete system backup during a convenient time. For secure storage, respectable offsite data backup providers store your files in highly secure “vaults” that are maintained and observed 24 hours a day.

Web Management System

Finally, many online data backup providers offer a web interface for convenient access to scheduling backups and retrieving files anywhere an internet connection is available. You should also receive an encryption code unique only to you to access your online storage.

I’ll leave you with this proverb: don’t spend your days worrying about losing your data; worry about not having an offsite backup service to recover it. To secure your business, learn more data backup strategies at Data Backup Solutions.