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Follow UsCARY, USA: According to a recent survey by GFI Software, small to medium-sized (SMB) businesses are losing critical business information as a result of failed backups, and have suffered significant impacts as a result.
Many IT administrators surveyed revealed that a failed backup has led to a loss of revenue and important company documents, including financial records, employee emails and confidential information such as social security numbers.
As a result, respondents indicated that failed backups have affected customer relations, business operations and brand reputation, said a press release.
The independent, blind survey of 200 IT administrators who work at U.S. organizations with fewer than 150 employees was conducted by Opinion Matters on behalf of GFI Software.
Managing Data Backup
One way to prevent data loss is to backup critical business files on a daily basis. However, more than half (53 per cent) of the organizations surveyed revealed they do not conduct daily backups.
* 32 per cent of IT administrators indicated the biggest reason for not backing up data every day is that it's not an efficient use of their time
* 23 per cent of IT admins said backing up data that frequently is "not necessary" or that there's "not much data" to backup
* 10 per cent of IT admins said the biggest reason they do not conduct a daily backup is because they have too much data.
Other respondents suggested they do not conduct backups every day because they lack the resources, efficient technology or sufficient storage space. Some respondents - including 75 per cent of those who work at organizations with 50-99 employees - said daily backups are disruptive to workplace productivity.
The Need for Speed
When asked how their current data backup processes could be improved, the number one factor cited was speed, with half of respondents indicating they wish their current backup processes were faster or more efficient. Other factors included cost (14 per cent), security (6 per cent) and reliability (5 per cent), while an additional 6 per cent said they wish their organization's data backup processes were managed by a third-party.
Cloud Concerns
Nearly two-thirds of organizations are not managing their data backup through the cloud, instead relying upon on-premise or virtual data backup solutions. One in ten organizations relies upon a hybrid approach to data backup.
Data Loss
In order to protect critical information, companies need to regularly test their backup solutions to ensure they work properly. However, nearly one-third (32 per cent) of IT administrators surveyed revealed their organizations do not conduct such tests.
Data Recovery
Successful data backup is critical. But equally, if not more important, is the ability to recover that data when needed. While only 6 per cent of respondents rely on daily data recovery, one in five respondents indicated they need to recover their data on at least a weekly basis.
Additionally, nearly three-quarters (74 per cent) of IT admins said they recover their data at least once every six months.
"A company's data is essential to its day-to-day operations and, ultimately, to the success of the business," said Andy Langsam, general manager at IASO, part of the GFI Software family.
"As such, organizations need to be able to rely upon secure backup solutions that are cost-effective and efficient," added Langsam.
It doesn't matter whether an organization is backing up its data on-premise, virtually or to the cloud. Backing up critical systems and applications on a large number of machines within an organization on a daily basis needs to be a fast process that does not impede workplace productivity or impact operational efficiency, concluded Langsam.