Reasons Why Backing up Data is Important

The world today heavily relies on data to survive. Even our time on earth is dependent upon data. How is that possible? Well, scientists from over the globe use tons of data to reach conclusions on the best medicines for humans and then roll them out for public use.

According to recent statistics and research, there are some 4 billion active users on the internet today. All of these users consume data in the form of video content, blogs and whatnot. Now, imagine waking up one day to see there is no data on the internet. All of your videos from YouTube, your streaming music from Spotify and your bookmarked blogs will no longer be accessible. The idea sounds horrifying, right?

Data, as widespread as it is, is an extremely sensitive commodity, which is host to a number of perils. For starters, you can suffer from a data breach. If you avoid that, you may be a victim of a ransomware attack. Even if you amplify your cyber security measures, a simple human error can delete all your data and lead to an internet blackout.

Keeping in mind the importance of retaining data for individuals and organizations, we mention some of the reasons why backing up data is important. Stay with us and gather some useful information on this subject matter.

What is a Data Backup?

A data backup can simply be defined as a second copy of everything you have. Run through everything you have, and maintain a second copy of it. The alternate copy is stored in a separate location and can be used when the first copy gets corrupted, erased, destroyed, stolen or lost.

A data backup can also be utilized to restore previous versions of your system and restore your system to a version before the attack. Backups are known to be highly critical for website owners as well, since they help them avoid data breaches and put their website live again in the case of a breach.

You can either back up your data on the cloud, through the internet or use an external storage drive to store the data on-premise.

Reasons to Have a Data Backup

While we do rely heavily on machines, it is a given fact that we cannot blindly trust them anymore. This goes for people who feel their systems are running alright and don’t require a backup. It can be quite frustrating to know that all your work and professional data has been corrupted, especially if you don’t have a backup.

Minimizes Impact of Virus Infections

A report recently released by the Ponemon institute unearthed that 54 percent of all companies in 2018 went through one or more virus attacks. These virus attacks compromised the safety of the systems and led to multiple errors in the processes. This is where it is important for organizations and individuals to maintain a data backup because cyber attacks are common today.

People who know the importance of a backup maintain a solid record of all their files and data to make sure they aren’t disconnected during a cyber attack. With a backup, you will remain secure and live, even if an attack infiltrates your system and damages your files.

Recovery Becomes Easier

Recovering from a cyber-attack is perhaps the most troublesome fact about such an incident. Even if you have all bases covered, you will find that recovery may take time and leave you at a loss of options. The best way to combat such an attack is to come up with a recovery backup plan.

Imagine a freelancer working on multiple clients online. For the freelancer to deliver files regularly and ensure optimal delivery patterns, it is highly necessary that they minimize blackouts and data breaches. However, if they don’t have a backup ready with them, they will eventually risk losing all their clients if their data is corrupted. Imagine starting afresh on files that you had already worked on.

Data Theft

Data theft is a lot more common today than we consider it to be. More than 3,000 records are stolen every minute, and a lot of them are deleted as well. While the stolen data in itself can be a liability, the hassle you go through in recovering from deleted data can be the worst part.

A data backup ensures you have a solid plan to go back to in the event of a data theft.

Saves Time

A data backup can help you save time and other resources when data is corrupted. You can turn to the backup almost immediately and start work on it without any additional delay. Backing up data can speed the recovery process and help save you time as well.

Cost Savings

Data loss can be extremely expensive to deal with. Imagine the financial brunt your business will go through if the data isn’t restored soon. It may cost you thousands of dollars to restore the files if you don’t have a good backup plan for your data. Also, the lost sales opportunity as a result of the downtime may have financial repercussions as well.

Increased Competitive Advantage

A good backup plan can help give you a good competitive advantage over your brands. Restoring data after an attack can help you generate a competitive advantage, which will come in handy during the times to come.

Data loss or theft doesn’t come without a warning and may catch you napping if you don’t have a good backup plan. Start a data backup plan today and safeguard your biggest resource.