Data disaster stands for a seriously debilitating loss of data in an organization, owing to natural or man made reasons.
Since the advent of the computer era, the trend of digitization of data has picked up throughout the world. Individuals and organizations tend to process and save data in a binary format. This simplifies the procedures and quickens the retrieval and use of important data. Information has always been the precursor of change and development. However, in today’s world, information is not merely about growth and progress, but, could mean the very survival of any concern. Never before were the business organizations and concerns so dependant on information as today. In the recent years, the rate at which the data is being generated the world over has increased at a fast phase and all the aspects of any business, right from the billing to manufacturing are indispensably reliant on the use of the saved data. In other words, data is the life blood of any company and any serious loss of data could threaten its very existence.
A data loss disaster could not only mean a prolonged shut down and loss of work hours, but may also lead to massive losses and the possible demise of a company. Hence it is a must that businesses ought to plan in advance as to how to avoid, control and manage man made and natural data disasters. What is required are pre-planned and well-calibrated policies that can minimize if not negate the possibility of any massive data loss under all circumstances.
Types of Data Disasters
Broadly speaking, data disasters are of two types i.e. man made or natural. The most common of all the man made disasters are attacks by malicious programs such as viruses, worms and trojans. Data may also be lost due to human error. Negligence or mishandling may damage an important piece of hardware, thus rendering all the stored data irretrievable. Important files or folders may accidentally get deleted or erased by an inadvertent click of the mouse. Theft and unwarranted tampering may be other possible causes of data disaster. Natural disaster means the loss of the data due to natural reasons. Natural calamities like floods, earthquakes and fire may lead to a massive annihilation of the digital hardware and all the stored data. Unsuitable environmental conditions may also cause a data loss owing to the degradation of the storage media.
Plan and Budget in Advance
An adroit IT support department is a must for every company, which intends to stay in the business for a long time. A preplanned disaster management policy should well be in place, drafted after considering all the long-term and short-term threats. Proper policies should be there to manage the archiving and preservation of all the storage media. A through assessment should be made to chalk out all the backup needs of the concern. Disaster management is a serious business and demands considerable investments. It is an irony that most of the business concerns prefer to invest there resources in the generation of the new data rather than safeguarding the old data. Sufficient budgetary allocations should be made to support the company’s disaster management, archival and backup facilities. A disaster never comes with a forewarning. It may strike anytime. Thus it is always safe to have a plan in advance.
Tackling Man Made Disasters
To protect the data against viruses and other malware, authentic and state of the art antivirus software should be installed in all the computers. Care should be taken that the antivirus software is updated on a regular basis and has all the relevant virus definitions and patches in place. In case of a malware attack, a crack team of IT support professionals should be ready with the appropriate recovery software to handle the situation. Strict regulatory protocols should be maintained to control the access to and use of data and should be religiously followed. Employees should be trained and sensitized in safe operational procedures and practices.
Tackling Natural Disasters
Architecture and infrastructure of the organization should be such as to be disaster proof. All the vital data should be categorized as per its utility and importance and should be backed up on a daily basis. Choice of the storage media should be made according to the relative importance and volume of the data. Multiple copies of the sensitive data should be made and stored at a distant location. Online backup solutions may also be used to store the data safely. Computer Forensics (also known as Digital Forensics) experts may be more appropriate if you are concerned that sensitive data may have been tampered with or destroyed.