In the past two years, we’ve seen several severe events that have affected businesses here in south Melbourne. Bushfires, storm damage and flooding – let alone a global pandemic. These events have highlighted how important it is to have a business continuity plan in place, to help keep things running if something does go wrong.
Data loss is one of the most impactful consequences of events like the ones we’ve seen in recent years. If your business’ important information – like customer and supplier contacts, financial details, or working files – is lost, it can severely disrupt business operations. That’s why data loss mitigation is a key factor in business resiliency. One of the ways you can help get back online and operating in the event of data loss is by building data loss mitigation strategies and processes into your business continuity plan.
What kind of events can result in data loss?
1. Natural disasters and extreme weather
Events like fires, floods, cyclones and storms can impact your business’ physical and digital infrastructure.
2. Cyber threats
Malicious attacks like ransomware or phishing can target your digital assets.
3. Theft
Physical theft on your business’ premises, or online data theft.
4. System failure
If your system crashes, your important information could be deleted.
5. Human error
Accidentally deleting files, or losing devices with data stored on them like mobile phones or laptops.
How to help your business recover from data loss
When it comes to recovering your business’ important digital assets, the best cure really is to prepare and prevent. By implementing Data Loss Prevention (DLP) tools and processes, you can find a path back to accessing your data if it does become compromised.
So, what are some of the steps you can take to preventing data loss in your business?
Understand your important business data
The first step to protecting your business’ data is understanding what’s important, and what the impact of losing it would be. An audit of your data can help uncover the information you need to create a robust data loss prevention process. Some of the things to consider are:
What data is important?
Take a look at what information your business needs to operate, like customer details, orders, and financial data.
Where is it located?
Do you have a process for storing this data, and do you use any systems to do so like Sharepoint or Dropbox?
What controls do you have in place?
Once you’ve identified what your important data is and where it’s held, do you have any passwords or authentication required to access them?
Who has access?
Do you have a hierarchy of who can access certain types of data, and a process for managing this access if staff leave your business?
By getting a clear picture of what your important digital assets are, where they are stored, and who has access to them, you can then begin to make a plan for protecting it.
Implement a data backup process
If you do lose some of your business’ important data, having regular backups in place can help you recover and get back up and running. Backups are also one of the key tactics that can be implemented to assist with data recovery in the event of a cyber attack. Real-time cloud backup solutions like Telstra Data Protect are designed to back up your files in encrypted on-shore data centres, in order to make returning to normal operations as smooth as possible.
Document your data loss prevention policy and include it in your business continuity plan
Once you have a process in place for backing up your data, documenting it and communicating it to your key personnel can help each person understand their role in protecting your business’ data. Including this in your business continuity plan can also help get your team on the same page and ready to act in the event of an emergency.
Our Business Technology Advisors are here to help
At TBTC Melbourne South, our Business Technology Advisors help local businesses make a plan to protect their important data, and recover in the event of a data loss incident. We can help you find the data loss prevention tools and systems that work for your business. If you’re ready to learn more about how you can help secure your business, talk to us today.
