Customer names and phone numbers, addresses, pictures, credit card info., emails, tax info., etc. Your business generates tons of data daily. Now, consider where you’re storing this data – Is it safe? Is it readily accessible? If a devastating event like a flood or fire were to happen, or if your business computer system just suddenly failed or fell prey to a ransomeware attack, would your data still be safe? If just by chance your answer is no, how long do you think your business could go on without its data? I can answer that for you – not very long.
Data loss is a global crisis. Every year thousands of businesses become victims of catastrophic data loss events and the statistics are appalling. In 2016 at the height of the WannaCry Ransomeware Attack, 40% of businesses in the UK’s medical and hospitality industries reported some form of data loss due to the attack. According to Gartner, 25% of all PC users suffer from data loss each year. There are approximately 1.5 billion PCs in use in the world according to Statista – that’s at least 375 million PC users suffering some form of data loss. For context, that is Barbados’ population at least 1339 times! The University of Texas reveals similarly distressing statistics in its 2016 report on Data Loss. 94% of businesses that suffer a catastrophic data loss do not survive – 43% never reopen and 51% close within two years.
With all these troubling statistics out there, it is probably even more disconcerting that Small Business Trends reports that 58% of businesses in the USA have no backup plan for data loss and 78% of small businesses have no cyber-attack response plan in place (National Small Business Indicator.)
Yes, I know, I know. All of these statistics are outside of the Caribbean. But as the world becomes more globalized and increasingly prone to devastating natural disasters, due to climate change (which we in the Caribbean are particularly vulnerable to), the probability of local and regional data loss occurring will increase. Your data, business or otherwise, might very well be in danger.
All is not lost, however. There is really only one consistent solution that is most likely to protect against and reduce the likelihood of data loss – Cloud-based Data Backup.
Cloud-based Data Backup allows the data on your business servers or PC to be stored on a readily accessible remote server (in multiple locations). It is the simplest, most reliable, most secure and most cost-effective backup solution for your data. In the event of a system failure, a malware attack or hacking incident, a devastating hurricane, a power outage or a flood, your business data will be safe and readily available via your secure Cloud-based Data Backup system.