Office 365 – five reasons it’s vital to back it up
You may not be aware but Office 365 doesn’t actually back up your data as part of it’s offering beyond 30 days. In fact, Microsoft only replicates cloud held data in order to observe legal data regulations – and that’s the reason why in 2019, Computer Geeks would recommend to all our clients that it’s vital they have a suitable Office 365 backup solution in place.
We’ve put together the top five reasons Computer Geeks recommend backing up Office 365:
- Email Backup and storage
Outlook has an inbuilt data retention of just 30 days, through the “Recover Deleted Items” functionality. However, if you accidentally move or delete an email but only discover this at a later date, for example, you will not be able to recover those items.
Similarly, if you choose to delete old emails to clear out your inbox, but then change your mind at a later date, or need to find old emails for Audit purposes, you will not be able to.
In order to ensure long term retention of company email data we recommend backing this data up.
- The trend towards Cloud File Storage in Microsoft Sharepoint
Computer Geeks are seeing an increase in the rate of uptake in cloud storage for company file-servers, as companies begin to prioritise the move to the cloud. Microsoft has developed hugely it’s Sharepoint platform and SMEs are beginning to move file servers to the cloud completely.
The default retention and backup inbuilt into Office 365 (30 days) is therefore insufficient and this risk should not be overlooked. We at Geeks are keen for you, our clients and prospects, to take the recommendation of deploying a backup solution into your Office 365 estate especially if you are currently using Sharepoint.
- Cyber attack
Sadly, ransomware attacks and cyber threats are increasing and there are many ways these kinds of malicious attacks can put a business at risk. These threats come in many different forms; some are designed to delete important files or block access to your computer system. Any form they take can be serious and could have costly consequences. Backing up data is imperative to making sure that your business is protected and safe from these types of attack.
- Human Error
Mistakes caused by employees, in the course of their work, is one of the main reasons for data loss. Most studies put the data loss rate due to human error at around 25%. Through such errors, a business could lose important data or find themselves in the unfortunate position of not being able to retrieve easily what’s been lost. Using an Office 365 backup solution protects against his type of human error and means that important data can be retrieved.
- Inside threats
A disgruntled employee launching a malicious and intentional attack on a business’s infrastructure is an inside threat which is not always obvious or one that is often thought about. However, ignoring this possibility, however slight, can seriously damage your business should this scenario arise. By making sure that there’s an Office 365 backup in place means you can retrieve any data that has been deliberately deleted.
The importance of protecting your business
It’s easy to assume that your business will not be subject to any disaster that affects the security of data. However, it’s highly likely that your business will encounter at least one of the issues we have mentioned, at some point. This is why you need to make sure that you have an effective back up plan in place working with a reputable provider.
The team at Computer Geeks monitors your IT systems constantly. This means that we are alerted should a problem start to happen. We can take immediate action and limit any effect on the running of your business. In addition, we check the health of your systems on an on-going basis and make sure that any updates are completed as required. Get in touch with us today on 0117 3250370 for more information about how our managed IT services and expert backup solutions can help your business.
