Additional protected data storage with backup as a service or disaster recovery? Five questions you can ask yourself to find out.

Infrastructure failures, natural disasters and cyberattacks in particular can throw a spanner in the works. According to a UN report, threats from natural disasters have increased in recent years. The number of cyberattacks has also risen sharply in recent weeks. It is easy for the current malware to render useless not only the productive business data, but also the available backups on their hard drives. Therefore, additional protected data storage is needed. Reason enough to take the protection of the systems seriously and best of all with an efficient backup & disaster recovery strategy.

Before deciding whether or not to use a backup and disaster recovery service, we recommend asking yourself the following five questions:

• Do you need absolutely high availability of your company data?
  Companies can hardly afford to do without business-critical applications for an extended period of time. In addition to lost sales, there is also the threat of possible recourse claims from third parties if, for example, deadlines or other business agreements are not met. It is essential to be prepared for emergencies with high data availability and to react quickly to ensure business continuity. In the best case, this happens so quickly that employees and customers are unaware.
• Is it important to you to be protected against security threats such as viruses and ransomware attacks?
  Cyber criminals take every opportunity to attack systems. “The cantonal police corps are noticing an increase in cyber phenomena that make reference to COVID-19. Criminals are specifically trying to exploit fears and concerns of the population for their machinations,” said MELANI* about the current situation. For the current malware, it is easy to render useless not only the productive business data, but also the available backups on their hard disks. Additional protected data storage is needed.
• Do you want a smooth and location-independent recovery?
  Not only data loss, but also interruptions at the network, application and server level should be prevented with backup and disaster recovery. If an emergency occurs, then one should have the ability to quickly restore the original working state without harming the business. A well-functioning disaster recovery scenario allows their business processes to continue in the event of an emergency and ensures access to systems regardless of location.
• Do you want to minimize the risks that a disaster brings?
  Stop of operations, loss of productivity, impending costs or reputational damage are not an option. For many companies, it could quickly slide into insolvency. Make sure, in such a disaster case, to be able to access the data/systems again quickly and smoothly, so that your company remains active and does not generate losses.
• Do you need to be able to recover data even after several years, since archiving proofs are “a must” for your company?
  Companies subject to accounting requirements are required by the Business Records Ordinance (GeBüV) to keep and store their information to be archived in such a way that it can not be changed without this can be determined (GeBüV, Art. 3). A backup solution should ensure such requirements. Decide for yourself how often your data need a backup and how long they should be available.

*The Reporting and Analysis Centre for Information Assurance MELANI is an organization of the Federal Administration of Switzerland. https://www.melani.admin.ch/melani/de/home/themen/covid-19.html, retrieved on 14.04.2020

Can you cover all these requirements with your current solution? Have you answered “yes” to at least one of the above questions? Then we recommend additional protected data storage.