It’s Time You Backed Up!
What? No, we don’t mean you move your business backwards. We mean back up your electronic data. Now that tax season is over, we’re guessing you have lots of valuable information on your hard drive. Imagine what might happen to your business if your computer crashed today. Don’t wait for it to happen before finding out. If you don’t have a system of backing up and saving your data, you need to start, and asap! As outlined in Scarlet Pruitt’s article on allbusiness.com entitled “Five Basic Rules of Data Storage,” here are 5 simple steps to follow in saving and storing your electronic data:
1. Determine your data-storage needs
Under the 2002 Sarbanes-Oxley Act, some businesses are required by law to keep copies of electronic correspondence, like email, for up to seven years. So depending on your industry and specific needs, your data-storage needs will be different from your neighbors. It’s important that you research industry requirements to ensure your business is in compliance. Also consider what data will need to be backed up and how often. Is this a job you will perform or will it be an employee’s responsibility? You can also consider outsourcing this crucial task.2. Choose a system that meets your needs
You have many options when considering backup and storage systems. There are special external drives you can purchase for that purpose. If your data is stored on numerous computers, however, you should look for a more efficient way of compiling and storing data. And while disks are a good temporary solution, they are not considered a reliable means of permanent storage. Optical media, like CD-ROMS and DVDs are a reliable method for long-term data storage. Also consider using an off-site, third-party storage provider if you would rather not bother with it in-house. Chances are you may not have enough data to justify a complex in-house storage system.3. Activate your storage system
There’s no use having a storage system if you don’t update and maintain it. Be it your job or someone else’s, you must ensure your information is properly safe-guarded.4. Properly label all media
In order for your storage system to be effective, you must properly label all the media. This requires you to institute a standard for labeling and storing data. That way, whether you do it this month or a new employee does it the next, all labels follow the same system of listing appropriate information. A filing system should also be introduced to ensure you can easily locate data when necessary.5. Store data offsite
While your system of using an external drive may work fine for you in-house, what happens in case of a fire? All that data would be lost, regardless of your efforts to secure it. It’s good practice to regularly backup your system and then store copies of this data offsite to protect it from extreme circumstances.
Your system for backing up and storing important data doesn’t have to be complicated in order to be effective. But it does have to exist in order to safeguard your business from lost data.
References
Pruitt, Scarlet. “Five Basic Rules of Data Storage.” Allbusiness.com.
