As we rely more heavily on complex IT systems to run our businesses, disaster recovery becomes increasingly important. The fact is, technology is vulnerable and there are continued threats to data security and system processes. If disaster strikes, your business could suffer.

The Main Risks to Your IT Infrastructure

You can’t anticipate every risk but you can get to know the most common ones. Knowing the possible causes of IT failure will help you quickly get things back up and running again.

• Human Error – Around 32% of all data loss is caused by human error. Data can be restored, but only if it has been backed up and the backup works. It’s easy to forget to backup or for backed up data to become corrupted, so even this isn’t foolproof.
• Computer Viruses – Protecting your computers with anti-virus software has never been more important. New viruses and malicious software emerge daily and are an ongoing threat to IT systems.
• Hardware Problems – There are a number of ways in which hardware can fail. Overheating, power supply failures and hard drive failures are just some of the common problems.
• Server Failure – Server failure can result in downtime and data loss.
• Software Corruption – This is extremely common and like server failure can cause data loss and system downtime.

The Financial and Legal Implications of System Failure

System failure can be extremely costly. In the event of a disaster, it may take 2-3 days to get critical business systems working again. That’s an enormous amount of lost custom and revenue.

In addition to the financial risks, businesses must consider the legal implications of system failures. There are numerous regulations regarding the storage of sensitive data. It is imperative that such laws are adhered to.

Creating a Disaster Recovery Plan

Backing up your data once a day is not a disaster recovery plan. Your plan should also include backup equipment, software and processes to recover your systems so that you can continue to operate if disaster should strike.

Simply creating a plan is not enough. You must also test it. Frequent testing allows you to ‘plan for the unknown’. You can check for any bugs in the recovery system and fine-tune the process. Testing is as important as creating a plan and should take place at least once a year.

Protect your business and find peace of mind with a fit-for-purpose Disaster Recovery Solution from Sentis. To find out how we can help you, call 0800 652 0804 or emailinfo@sentisms.com today.