The business technology you rely on every day confronts many dangers in the event of a disaster. Data storage, servers, and workstations can all be harmed by debris in the air. If your building floods, you risk having vital equipment submerged for an extended period. Invariably, electronics that aren't well-protected from power surges can be damaged.

Further, if your organization has a Bring Your Own Device policy, it's conceivable that critical data on personal devices will be left in the path of the hurricane. If you don't have a disaster and recovery services solution, you might lose weeks or months of work in a matter of hours.

What influence do hackers, hurricanes, and data breaches have on small and big businesses?

Making intelligent business decisions is critical for every company's long-term growth and profitability. There's more to that, in any case. In many situations, an organization's success or failure is determined by how it reacts to events beyond its control. Unforeseen circumstances might lead to a company's collapse. Another firm, on the other hand, may be able to endure natural disasters because it has a managed IT services strategy in place, in this case, an IT disaster recovery plan.

Every firm, no matter how big or little, faces many threats. These threats have the potential to have disastrous consequences for businesses. Cyber attacks, according to ZDNet, are the world's third-largest threat. The researchers also likened cyber attacks to natural disasters and extreme weather conditions such as hurricanes. It's a sobering reality, but it's the truth. Hackers, natural disasters, network assaults , and data breaches are potential threats to organizations and their data. Cyberattacks are particularly dangerous for businesses that rely on the Internet.

Mitigate the damage

Natural disasters may have a wide variety of consequences on a company's operations, so it's crucial to think about them all. The idea isn't to go without emergency supplies or make evacuation arrangements. Organizations must also consider how to communicate with their employees if the internet goes down. All of these elements should be included in your IT disaster recovery plan.
If natural disasters restrict you from accessing important transportation routes, you may need to consider managing your supply chain, regardless of your business. If the facilities you require are unavailable, having a backup plan is essential.

Life is full of both uncertainty and change. In these exceptional conditions, there is currently no means of knowing what will happen next. In the business world, the same is true. You're at the top one day and the bottom the next. Implement the necessary disaster and recovery services solutions to ensure that you can always climb back up.

When it comes to technology, it's no different

Businesses are presented with a fresh set of issues every day. It's all part of the package. Natural disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes, and power outages are just a few examples of natural disasters that may cause havoc with your infrastructure. Manufactured concerns like ransomware and other types of malware can also cause routine business processes to be disrupted.

Isn't that a little frightening? There is, nevertheless, still reason to be optimistic.

Businesses must protect their data around the clock, seven days a week. The problem is that not everyone is aware of the most basic security measures to safeguard their information. Fortunately, managed IT services can help.

Disaster recovery and resilience

These terms should not intimidate you. A backup and disaster recovery strategy is simply a procedure developed by your IT team or an outside expert for restoring your data after an unforeseen occurrence. You can look up “disaster recovery plan tactics” on the Internet, but they won't work as well as you'd want. The benefits of a disaster recovery plan are determined by the solutions you use to satisfy your company's particular needs.

However, disaster and recovery services should be included in a disaster recovery strategy. Recovery after a disaster is akin to purchasing insurance to protect yourself from the unforeseen. Even if you never need it, knowing it's there in case you do is comforting. You can reduce the impact of downtime, speed up the recovery process, and maintain the security of sensitive data after it has been restored if you have a disaster recovery policy. The importance of catastrophe recovery planning may be summed up in three words: calm.

All businesses, regardless of size, require a business continuity strategy tailored to their particular requirements. A disaster recovery plan may appear to take a long time to develop, implement, and maintain, but it is essential. Knowing your system's weak points is always a good idea in today's fast-paced world.

Yet, disaster recovery planning is only the first step. Backups should be made regularly.

What does data backup entail?

A data backup strategy should also be included in your IT strategy checklist. Even if your network looks highly efficient, a single, unexpected incident might disrupt your system and cause data loss. To better grasp data backup, let's look at some of the most common types.

On premises or offsite?

Storage devices used for onsite backup include hard drives and onsite servers. Offsite backup is a method of storing data on the cloud. You can access data stored in remote locations as long as you have an Internet connection. Because the hardware on a local server might be costly, backing up data to the cloud or the internet is considerably safer and more cost-effective.

Is there a distinction to be made between the two? It's all a matter of perspective. Because every organization is different, your data storage location is determined by your company's needs. The best course of action for your company is an onsite backup, an offshore backup, or a mix of the two with help from managed IT services.

In the case of a crisis, disaster and recovery services work together to keep a company functioning smoothly. Securing our data has become a significant obligation for companies to compete in today's highly competitive business climate.

Businesses commonly outsource backup and disaster recovery (DR) services. This technique will make recovering and restoring your company's data considerably easier if something goes wrong. If you're still on the fence, keep reading to understand five of the many reasons why outsourcing your backup and disaster recovery is a good idea.

It's tough to find enough people to do the job.

The issue with identifying and recruiting qualified personnel

Finding a skilled person who also fits into your company's culture is challenging. Finding top-tier personnel is becoming more difficult as the market becomes more competitive and candidate-driven. According to Indeed, software engineers and technical support workers were among the most advertised positions. On the other hand, outsourcing your disaster and recovery services eliminates the risk of losing a candidate to a competitor or a larger IT company.

Does your IT infrastructure scale adequately?

Companies with their own IT teams typically plan for the future, but expansion is rarely considered. As your company grows, you may need more servers, software, storage devices, and networks. For new systems to operate, old data must communicate with them, and vice versa. Backup and disaster recovery (BDR) services might be outsourced to trustworthy service providers that already have the data centers and resources in place to handle future expansion.

Do you know what's going on in the world of technology?

When it comes to maintaining business continuity, backups on an external hard drive are only part of the issue. It needs a comprehensive examination of potential hazards as well as continuous upgrading to stay current. Outsourcing these activities makes sense, especially for organizations with over-burdened technicians. When you engage with a service provider like SSI, you will access all of our resources and knowledge. It's like having an extra arm of your firm without the hassle of managing them or paying for their perks.

Are you ready for all the costs?

When IT budgets are tight, it's tempting to keep everything in-house. However, each action must be weighed against the long-term financial implications. According to Computer Economics, 92 percent of respondents indicated that outsourcing disaster recovery was the same as or less expensive than performing it in-house. Service providers may pass on savings to their customers since they invest in hardware, infrastructure management, and data centers upfront. A smart pricing plan fosters transparency and predictability in expenditures, making them easier to manage.

Aside from the major hardware and licensing costs, there are also hidden costs such as people, risk, and recruitment to consider. Managed IT services can help you save money in the long term by decreasing your time looking for skilled employees.

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and data compliance

There's no reason to take any chances because the GDPR places a high priority on data loss prevention (DR) testing. Both of these criteria are described in Article 32 of the acronym that everyone loves:

• After a calamity, quickly restoring data availability and access.
• The ability of a data security plan to be evaluated and appraised.

Making weekly backups of your data is no longer sufficient. According to the GDPR, data must be restored as soon as possible, and we must follow particular protocols to ensure that recovery attempts are effective. If your B/DR system is audited, you can be confident that you will have detailed records of system testing and will be able to recover and restore your data quickly in the event of an incident.

Final thought

In the event of a hurricane, business continuity strategies should include customized documented backup, and disaster recovery plans and processes, which may be supplied by managed IT services partner knowledgeable with your unique IT risks.
Please get in touch with us by email or phone if you have any questions or concerns about your IT infrastructure's strategy for the next hurricane.

SSI offers a broad range of IT management services due to the skill of our IT specialists. Find out more or get a custom proposal here!