Maxell Offers Tips for Creating Backup Strategy

This Halloween, there is something even more frightening to consider than the ghouls, goblins, and ghosts around you: data loss. Data loss can happen in an instant — from natural disasters, computer viruses, hackers, basic human error, or one of countless other ways. Maxell Corporation of America  is reminding consumers and businesses to take stock of their current data backup practices during the month of October in preparation for ‘Maxell Fall Backup Day.’ Friday, October 31st is the third annual ‘Maxell Fall Backup Day,’ the day when everyone should protect their valuable files by performing a data backup.

Data loss does not discriminate, affecting both companies and consumers alike. Consumers use their personal computers to store priceless and often irreplaceable digital photos of friends and family members, music files, and personal financial and medical information. According to a recent Harris/Symantec Data survey, 43 percent of computer owners surveyed don’t back up — ever — despite the fact that a full quarter of the respondents (24 percent) admitted to losing data from a computer crash over the past six months. "Diligent backup practices are necessary for every person who records and saves digital information," said Al Dripchak, technical manager of Maxell. "While a hard drive crash may not cost them their livelihood, it can be equally devastating." Proper data backup could mean the difference between maintaining sentimental photo and music libraries to share with the next generation, and having little or no physical evidence of memories to pass along.

Businesses share an even greater dependency on information, specifically sales histories, inventory figures, and customer or patient profiles, for daily operations. Maxell District Sales Manager Dave Fowler recounts his time working at a technology company in California during a particularly bad fire season, and witnessing the destruction it had on small business in the area. "The majority of small businesses that experienced data loss from the fires and did not have their files backed up were never able to recover," said Fowler. Fowler’s experience is not uncommon: according to a survey by DTI/Price Waterhouse Coopers, 70 percent of small firms that experience a major data loss go out of business within a year. Those businesses that are lucky enough to survive total failure still risk financial losses, business interruption, and waning customer trust.

Maxell data storage experts also remind business owners that the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and Sarbanes-Oxley government regulations add a legal requirement to the practical case for backup. The charge for not complying with these regulations can be stiff criminal and financial penalties. It is critical for business owners to verify with their legal counsel that the company is obeying all applicable regulations.

For more information regarding regulatory compliance

Tips for Creating a Comprehensive Storage Strategy
With the importance of data backup on the rise, the options have expanded to accommodate the various needs of businesses and consumers. Based on almost 40 years of experience in premium recordable media, Maxell has developed the following list of topics to consider when establishing a new backup plan:

• Evaluate Your Needs: There are many options for backing up data, such as high capacity tape; external hard drives; CD or DVD formats, including WORM (Written Once Read Many) for regulatory compliance; and encryption technologies for sensitive data. Before determining which of these will best fit the needs of your business and/or yourself, it is important to first take a look at your current data storage requirements and approximate future growth of data. As a general rule, consider that company data will double every 18 months. Personal data is unlikely to increase as much, but do allow for growth.
• Construct a Backup Schedule: Once you have fully evaluated your system and files to ensure that everything to date has been recorded, it is crucial to continue with daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly backups to keep new data current and backed up as changes occur.
• Consider all data devices: With technology being the framework around which most businesses and homes operate, your storage backup practice should include all data producing devices. This includes all moving parts of your business and everyday life; laptops, mobile phones, blackberries, PDAs, and home office computers.
• Think You’re Secure? Check Again: Most people rely heavily on electronic equipment to protect them from data loss, but it is also important to remember that backup tools are not always 100% reliable. Double-checking your backup tapes every few months to ensure the information is recorded correctly and remains undamaged is fundamental to the process. A scratch can completely ruin individual documents, or make entire media unreadable.
• Identify Potential Problems: Maxell’s new Linear Tape-Open (LTO) Cartridge Quality Analyzer is leading the way in the fight against defective and damaged LTO cartridges for business clients. Since there is no way to determine the quality of an LTO cartridge from outside appearance, the Maxell Quality Analyzer is necessary to read an internal memory chip which can alert you to potential problems. By identifying issues ahead of time, you can be sure you won’t entrust critical data to a faulty cartridge ever again.
• Avoid Recycled or Used Media: Though it might be tempting in a tightening economy to purchase recycled or used media, Maxell warns that it can be unreliable and may not provide the security you seek. Since you don’t know where that media has been and what may be wrong with it, you and your data are left susceptible to any number of frightening possibilities. It is important to do the research before purchasing media and advisable to spend a little extra to get better protection, than to realize the media you have purchased is faulty. Utilizing top quality Maxell media can help ensure your data is protected.
• Maintain A Safe Distance: Offsite storage is another crucial safety measure not to be taken lightly in the battle against data loss. In the event of a natural disaster, having both your original and backup data in the same location can cancel out all your efforts at a sound data protection plan. Major businesses should consider renting an offsite storage location with appropriate temperature controls, and security personnel, as well as an organized retrieval system. For average home computer users, it is advisable to keep a backup copy outside of your home, either at the office or a designated storage site.
• You Can Never Be Too Vigilant: Data such as credit card numbers, social security information, as well as customer and employee personal information, is among the most important within a company and a family. Not only can the loss of information create financial liabilities and penalties in the short-term, loss of sensitive data can damage brand reputation and individual security in the long-term. According to the Ponemon Institute, from January 2005 to July 2007, 158 million Americans had personal data exposed. With the estimated cost per breach at $182, the total runs $28.7 billion. Encryption technologies, such as LTO4 tape, can offer safe data storage allowing only authorized personnel access to information by using the right ‘key’ that can decode or ‘decrypt’ the information.

Current backup technologies are more cost-effective and user-friendly than ever before, allowing businesses and consumers to find a sound data protection plan to fit their needs.