Every business uses data daily. If you lost your critical data, what would you do? If you do not have backup, chances are it would destroy your business or if you are lucky, you would gradually work your way back. In fact, 70% of companies go out of business after a major data loss (DTI).
Data is an organisations most valuable asset and therefore should be protected at all cost. Even the best systems can crash causing lost data, even the most dependable employee can make a mistake and any organisation can be vulnerable to theft or natural disasters.
Having one back up is not robust enough, especially stored on the same premises, a flood or a fire could wipe out both back-ups, other incidents could be theft or vandalism. The most common cause of data loss is human error which accounts for approximately 25% of all data losses according to a recent study*
*Databarracks
With Ransomware attacks on the increase and many ransomware attackers recently using the COVID-19 pandemic as a lure. Backing up your data is a key part of the defence against ransomware and other malware
So, it’s imperative that organisations protect their critical data by backing it up. Adopting the 3,2,1 Approach to back up can offer that peace of mind.
What is the 3,2,1 Approach?
First coined by Peter Krogh, a commercial photographer and expert in Digital Asset Management (DAM). The 3-2-1 rule was initially established to address hard drive failures. Data storage is prone to failure, making data backup the only safe option.
The 3,2,1, strategy is extremely simple
• 3 copies of your data should be maintained
• 2 copies of that data to be stored on different media types
• 1 backup copy to be stored offsite
Three Copies of Data
That includes the original copy and at least two backups. Usually, the first backup copy of data is stored in the same physical location if not the same physical server. Then more copies of your data stored in different physical servers/locations means that you will have less risk of losing data during an incident, even a malicious data attack.
Two Different Media Types
Choose two different media types of storage, often when you purchase two drives together, they will have the same mean time between failures. It is common when one drive fails that the other drive will fail at a similar time. Storing data on two different media types such as a USB drive and then an external hard drive will mitigate this risk.
One Backup Copy to be Stored Offsite
Regardless, if you have two copies of backups stored on different media types stored onsite, you will still need to have a third copy stored offsite. Having physical separation between your data is vital, as a disaster such as a flood or a fire could wipe out all of your data overnight.
Keep a third copy of your data offsite, preferably in the cloud.
Why use the Cloud for Back Up?
Using the cloud offers inexpensive data storage, which helps you maintain three separate copies of your data without breaking your budget.
What are the benefits?
• Transparent to daily processes.
• Is always up to date.
• Recovering is fast and simple. No fast forwarding tapes!
• No limitation on storage capacity.
• Flexible price tag. Pay only for what you use.
