Dear Data-Diligent Reader,

Today most companies are facing challenges when it comes to protecting their data.  There’s more of it.  And protecting the data properly is more important than ever.  But there are also more choices.  How do you decide what is right for you? Start by understanding what your data protection strategy should be.

Your business relies on its data. There’s more of it than ever, but more important, its value keeps multiplying. Companies are putting their information to work in new ways as they connect systems, transform business processes, and extend their relationships over the Internet with customers, partners and suppliers. Unfortunately, the risks from data loss or exposure have grown, too. The always-on world of e-commerce and companies’ increasingly distributed and mobile workforces have made data more vulnerable. Moreover, senior executives have to worry about maintaining regulatory compliance while mitigating the risk of litigation.

Do You Have A Data Protection Strategy? How can you ensure that your company is embracing the right combination of technologies and processes for a complete data protection strategy? Unfortunately, it’s easy to make the wrong choices.  Some companies assume a do-it-yourself approach, which can leave them open to unidentified risks.

An outsourcing partner who provides online disk-based backup can solve a number of the issues that organizations confront when supporting their business continuity, data retention and security requirements. The key advantage is that the data, stored off-site, is protected from unauthorized access and will survive a disaster.

Online backup combines better cost characteristics with superior reliability and world-class security. The great news for smaller businesses and remote offices of larger businesses
is that online disk-based backup services have matured in technology reliability and decreased in cost.  Today, online backup is often less expensive than tape backup alternatives.

Get Ready For Your Annual Data Protection Physical! Companies have different requirements when it comes to their recovery needs, data sensitivity, retention requirements and cost.  And these can evolve and change. Deciding which backup solution, or solutions, to use is just the start of what should be an annual process of testing data protection and recovery strategies to ensure they remain in line with business requirements. A great plan, a great vendor and getting data off-site are a good start, but you need to test the whole process, not only to ensure everyone knows what they are doing but to identify potential gaps in the process that need attention. And as the business changes, your plan needs to change with it to meet any new requirements.  

We would love to hear your thoughts. Please comment below!

Tags: data protection services, data security, disaster recovery, HIPAA Security Law, The HITECH Act
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Bob Chaput wrote this blog. Bob is president of Data Mountain LLC, a data security, disaster recovery and data protection services firm. Data Mountain specializes in helping Covered Entities and Business Associates assure they are compliant with the Contingency Plan Standard of the HIPAA Security Law and The HITECH Act.

Dear Data-Diligent Reader,

Chief Financial Officers typically care about three things when it comes to assessing new investments in IT.  They are:  1) Speed, 2) Focus and 3) Affordability.   I know this first hand! The key is to understand how replacing your current server and/or PC data protection processes with a cloud storage solution would address these three areas of concern.

In today’s economic environment, every spending proposal needs to have solid justification.  Often just speaking about a shift to a “pay-as-you-go” model is enough to get the CFO’s attention.  But the appeal of cloud storage extends beyond its financial benefits.  Here are three key benefits companies are realizing today when adopting cloud storage:

Focus: Companies want to focus on their core competencies, and outsource the rest to experts.  Are you still doing your own payroll?  Using a cloud storage provider allows your IT department to focus on projects that drive the business, such as customer service or e-commerce applications.  And cloud storage providers have the expertise to optimize their operations for better efficiencies.

Speed: How often have you been involved in IT projects that took longer than expected?  Chances are your CFO has felt the same pain.  Quick ROI is everything, and when it comes to competing for funding, decisions are being made about when companies can expect to see valuable returns for their investments.  This theme is a key one driving the adoption of cloud computing today.

Affordability: In addition to the “pay-as-you-go” model, cloud storage is appealing because it offers flexibility.  As a company you aren’t paying up front, predicting your storage requirements and investing in the hardware and software to support those requirements.  Instead you pay for what you use.  As you scale or reduce your demand.

With capital at a premium, and companies looking for faster returns from their investments, another appeal of cloud storage services is that they typically can be funded from the Operating Expense (OpEx) budget, without sunken Capital Expenditures (“CAPEX”).  This approach allows you to match the cost of the service to the period in which it is consumed.

If you aren’t already outsourcing your data backup and recovery, then its time you took a look at the cloud storage model.  Today’s solutions can provide you and your company with the technical functionality to protect your data better than you can probably do it in-house, with none of the headaches.  The 1-2-3 message of “Focus + Speed + Affordability” is often enough to cause any company to evaluate cloud storage. 

Data Mountain has been providing world-class cloud storage solutions since 2003, through our service partner, Iron Mountain Digital, and we truly understand what it takes to securely protect corporate information in the cloud.  Contact us to learn more if you think we may be able to help you.

We would love to hear your thoughts. Please comment below!

Tags: data protection services, data security, disaster recovery, HIPAA Security Law, The HITECH Act
Posted in News | Comments Off

Bob Chaput wrote this blog. Bob is president of Data Mountain LLC, a data security, disaster recovery and data protection services firm. Data Mountain specializes in helping Covered Entities and Business Associates assure they are compliant with the Contingency Plan Standard of the HIPAA Security Law and The HITECH Act.