BUSINESS
Irish firms risk major data loss
30-01-2007
by Ciara O'Brien
Almost half of Irish companies have left themselves open to serious data loss by failing to put disaster recovery plans in place.
According to a new survey by IT firm MJ Flood Technology, some 43 percent have no documented disaster recovery plan, while a staggering 90 percent are not testing their system restores on a recommended weekly basis.
This is despite the fact that 18 percent of organisations believe data loss could result in the collapse of their entire operations, while 42 percent recognised that loss of productivity was also a likely result of major data failure.
Surprisingly, some 17 percent of companies have missed the point of backing up their data completely, and continue to store it onsite, exposing it to loss from fire, flood or other disasters.
Almost a third are storing their vital data in a location that is not fireproof, while 30 percent are failing to replace the backup tapes after 12 months -- the recommended shelflife for this type of storage media.
These practices are putting businesses at risk of losing revenue, should their systems fail and data is lost.
"Backing up critical business information is not an option -- it's a necessity," said James Finglas, MJ Flood's sales director.
"The results of our survey reveal a serious educational deficit in backup methodologies used by Irish companies. While the consequences of data loss are clearly understood, many organisations are using flawed backup processes and are exposing themselves to acute operational risk. In this era of increased governance, we are encouraging companies to review their backup methodologies as a matter of urgency, and fulfill their corporate responsibilities."
The survey also found that less than 10 percent of IT budgets goes on backup expenses, and some 43 percent of companies weren't planning to change that any time soon.
New technologies were also a bugbear for companies -- 51 percent had never heard of online backup services, while 34 percent of those who had, blamed the cost for failing to take advantage of this new approach. Some 18 percent were worried about the security aspects of this back-up method.
Despite all these flaws, 61 percent of companies said they are happy with their backup process, rating it as an eight on a scale from one to 10.
But the timeframe for restoring data also caused some concern. While almost half of respondents said that data would have to be recovered within two hours, 21 percent opted for a day as acceptable. Worryingly, 7 percent believed several days would be needed to fully restore everything.
"Backing up your data according to best practice ensures continuity of business operations. Having a carefully crafted disaster recovery plan in place protects the image and reputation of the business and can even contribute to reductions in operational costs in the case of lower insurance premiums," Finglas said.
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