It’s not just your imagination: high-profile examples of data loss due to theft, human error and natural disasters are on the rise. What you may not realize is that every business is at risk. Not just the Fortune 500 companies you see on the evening news – mom and pop stores, tech startups and small- to mid-sized businesses are all vulnerable.
The trouble is, even in an era where our awareness of these vulnerabilities is higher than ever, many businesses – including construction managers and general contractors – still do not employ a robust data protection and disaster recovery plan. This article will take you through some of the key reasons why your data is more valuable than you think, and how a potential data loss event has repercussions far beyond the inconvenience of restoring access.
Cyber threats grow by the day. Hackers have endless motivation to target businesses of all sizes, from political statements to collecting ransom. Your company’s data recovery plan should include protocol for how to recover from a cyber attack and how your data will be protected and restored in the meantime. Experts say 43 percent of cyber attacks target small businesses – are you next?
Mother Nature Doesn’t Discriminate
Every region of the country is vulnerable to weather-related disasters. From fires on the West Coast to hurricanes up and down the eastern seaboard, a data loss due to Mother Nature’s impact is a reality for many businesses. Research indicates 80% of companies that close for at least five days fail to reopen, making a quick recovery from natural disasters an absolute necessity.
Your Reputation is Irreplaceable
Think about it: a loss of data due to any number of threats doesn’t just mean a headache for you; it plants doubt, frustration and fear in your most valuable asset – your customers. While it can seem like an upfront expense with no immediate return on investment, not having to explain to clients why your business is at a standstill or which of their sensitive data is either missing or at risk pays all the return in the world (and then some).
Customers Hate Downtime
On a related note, even the most understanding of customers despises downtime due to actions or influences outside of their control. Not to mention that your customers can also include your own employees, who may be kept at a standstill or otherwise have their productivity greatly diminished while data recovery attempts are underway. Also worth considering is that if this inactivity occurs due to ransomeware or other types of cyber attacks, you’ll likely pay whatever price is necessary to get your business back on its feet – which may be more than the cost of a data backup resource.
Humans Make Mistakes
If none of the above reasons scare you, consider the ever-present threat: human beings. Put simply, your employees, partners and subcontractors are imperfect. Mistakes happen. And sometimes, those mistakes can be immensely costly and put tremendous strain on your business. Deleting documents, forgetting to backup important data and other innocent mistakes can all be handled quickly with a robust data backup and recovery plan and protect against the one threat every business will face.
It’s Not to Late to be Safe
As you can see, there are plenty of real-world reasons to have a plan for responding to and recovering from a data loss or breach incident. With the New Year upon us, perhaps it’s time to reassess whether your business is fully prepared for the constantly growing list of threats poised to attack business and industries of every size and type.
Make sure that your company is following these important protocols regarding your data:
