DriveSavers Data Recovery Security Tips For Small Business Owners

As a small business owner you have a million projects on your mind at any given moment, often leaving your data recovery plan at the bottom of the to-do list. In fact, a recent study by Symantec found that 57% of SMBs have no disaster recovery plan. Yet, SMBs experience an average of six outages a year, with the top reasons being cyberattacks, power failures, and natural disasters.

Planning ahead for a data catastrophe may seem like a tedious task, but with the right knowledge and a solid action plan, you can prevent a complete data loss that could mean the end of your business

So where do you start? Scott Moyer, director of business development at DriveSavers Data Recovery, has compiled a list of tips on ways to protect your data before a catastrophe strikes.

Use a password manager

Security is of upmost importance when protecting your data. But it's practically impossible to remember all the passwords you use when logging into various websites. That's why many people use the same password for many different websites. While it's convenient to use a single password, it defeats the purpose of having them. The best option, besides keeping a printed copy locked in a safe deposit box, is to use a password manager such as Roboform or LastPass.

Encrypt sensitive data

Encrypting data on your computer is another great way to protect you from an unwanted breach of security or privacy should your computer become stolen. As we were wrapping up this newsletter edition, a news story appeared stating that hackers leaked more than 1 million Apple iPhone and iPad IDs, allegedly stolen from an FBI laptop. You can read about it here. While the FBI is denying that the data came from them, this particular case demonstrates how encrypted data can protect sensitive you. 

Always Backup

No matter how busy you are, protecting your data (or your customer's data) is imperative. Make backups easier by automating the process with software. For added protection use the triple-redundant method: Back up locally to a hard drive or other media, back up to a secondary local device and take the media offsite; back up across a network to a server or online backup service.

Know Your Recovery ABC’s

Knowing the signs of a drive failing will help you optimize your chances for recovery. If you are hearing clicking, grinding or whirring sounds shut down your computer immediately and do not use data recovery or utility software. The use of data recovery or utility software can potentially cause data loss. Next, unplug the power to the computer before removing the hard drive. Hard drives are extremely sensitive to static electricity and physical jarring.

Leave it to the Professionals

As a small business, it is important to watch every nickel and dime and understand where priorities lie when spending money on vendors. But when it comes to your losing your data, it’s time to throw that DIY attitude out the window. Do not attempt recovery your data personally by using any type of diagnostic or repair tools. Doing so may cause further damage or permanent data loss. Remember, the first recovery attempt is the most successful. Play it safe and send hardware to a professional.

But before you trust a data recovery service provider with your data, do your homework and research the vendor. Cheap services are typically that way for a reason.  Make sure the data recovery vendor is reputable by checking for proof of industry certifications and security protocols. You do not want a data breach that includes your critical financial data (or worse yet, your customers’ data) stolen.