Data Loss, a Problem for Over One in Five Small Businesses
If you are the owner of a small or medium business (SMB), then you work hard to provide great products, great services and always do your best for your customers. It is most likely that your business is your pride and joy, and you have poured hours, days and months of hard work into making your company a great success.
We’re a growing business too, and we understand the importance of protecting your business. That’s why we have made it our business, to help you to protect yours.
What is so important about my SMB company data?
Not everyone will consider data protection as a priority, but let’s just think about the importance of data to the typical SMB.
A recent study by the Paragon Software Group showed that just over twenty percent of small businesses have at some point, had a loss of data which has impacted their company. Many SMB’s have disclosed that they have weak, or non-existent measures in place for data recovery, data loss, and data back-up, which at some point in time has affected their reputation, their relationships with clients or their bottom line.
What are the different ways in which a data loss can occur?
The Paragon survey outlines that the data losses are not reflective of a flaw in any services or products offered. They are the result of poor training, lack of knowledge, and also the sophisticated IT threats that exist today.
- – Over 40% of SMB’s do not have internal IT support
- – Over 20% of SMB’s do not do a daily back-up of their business systems and information
- – Over 42% of people who do not perform these critical back-ups have no plans to start
A data loss doesn’t always occur because of some malicious online attack. It can occur simply by human error. For example, a lost mobile or tablet device.
The majority of sources online who offer advice for SMB’s and detail best practices, 99.9% of the time will include backup as a fundamental best practice for all users of cloud technologies. Having unencrypted data, or data which is not backed-up equates to poor data management and puts a company’s reputation, revenue and operations at risk. A back-up will consist of having copies of data, in multiple places. Sometimes times this data is not actually under your control, it is with the cloud provider, this means it’s even more important to have this data encrypted.
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If you are one of the many millions of SMB’s who have chosen to store their data in the cloud, having your data encrypted, and securing the technology within your business is vital. Data should be encrypted whether it is in transit, so being sent via email for example, or at rest, on your laptop or mobile device perhaps. It is also important to instantly encrypt this data, as we do not always know what is around the corner, or how quickly a data breach will occur. All too often we hear of people leaving their devices or laptops unsecure for only a matter of hours when a critical data loss or breach occurs.
Having a simple, cost effective solution can fully protect your client data, it can protect your own private financial information. More importantly, If you are caught out by an attack, having your data encrypted means that the risk and impact are significantly reduced. After all, data breaches can be a very costly affair to have to deal with, especially where other people’s personal information is concerned.
If you haven’t already considered encrypting your data or have been reluctant to move to the cloud because of security concerns, now is the ideal time to talk to us about how SMiD can help you to achieve your business goal simply and securely.