Are you gambling with your company’s critical data and network security?

Even though your data and network security systems are critical to every aspect of running your business and serving your clients, most business owners will confess they don’t know all that much about this important area of their business. They are purely hoping their current IT person has it handled.

If you can say “YES” to the following questions you should be all set. If you can’t, your company’s business data and network security may be at risk.

1. Are you absolutely certain that your data is being backed up daily to a secure, remote location?

Critical business data should be backed up regularly to a secure off-site location. Critical business data relates to anything that you need to keep your business running on a daily basis. This includes business files, client information, emails and line of business data. Even if you are using third-party software such as QuickBooks online, it is a good practice to create a backup of that data file on a regular basis. You can never have too many backups!

2. Do you conduct a test restore of your data regularly to validate the system is accurately backing up all the critical files and information you never want to lose?

Test backed up data often to confirm that it can be recovered fully in the event of an emergency. Open up random files to make sure that they are not corrupt. Verify the backups by restoring a backup on another device and confirm that all the necessary files can be accessed.

3. Do you know exactly how fast your network could be back up and running if your server broke down or a disaster happened?

A plan for disaster recovery should be developed. Depending on your backup and recovery system, it could take hours or several days to recover critical systems and data. Organizations need to weigh the costs of recovery with possible downtime, should a system fail or disaster hits.

4. If you had to access your data in an emergency, would you know how if your IT person wasn’t available?

Having an IT disaster recovery plan in place will outline details of what to do and who to call when you have an emergency. Your disaster recovery plan should also identify critical software applications, data, and the hardware required to run them. Keep this plan readily available to key business members.

5. Can you verify your network is being monitored 24-7-365 for hackers, viruses and even internal attacks?

Business systems are constantly under attack. The majority of these attacks are automated. They scan the internet looking for unsecured ports, out of date software, and unsuspecting/uneducated users. It doesn’t matter what size your organization is. Businesses large and small are just as likely to become compromised. Statistically small businesses have a greater risk, as they tend to
spend less money on security and backup services than larger organizations.

We cover all five of these areas for our Elite partners. (Along with so much more!) If you are not a ClearCom IT partner yet, reach out to our team at 508-205-1114. We will discuss the options for an IT assessment of your current back up and network security systems.