THE CLOUD IS GREAT, BUT DON’T FORGET TO KEEP A BACKUP

Cloud services are great. Whether you are a big corporate using Amazon Web Services for business-critical operations or an individual user storing a text file in Google Drive, the ability to have an online copy of important data creates peace of mind.

Storing data in the cloud presents multiple benefits, two of which are remote access to content or documents via multiple devices, and the knowledge that the data is not lost if your device storing the files locally is compromised or breaks down.

Many cloud services are easy to use and often provide users with a storage capacity that far exceeds what their primary computing device offers offline. The ease-ofuse and almost unlimited storage space makes it an attractive primary storage option for users, and this is where risk arises.

As users become more reliant on cloud-based storage and services, making offline copies of important data falls away. While the likes of Google Drive, Microsoft’s Onedrive, and Dropbox are great solutions, online services are not immune to problems.

Keeping a backup

According to IBM, at the start of 2017 the world was creating 2.5 quintillion bytes of data per day. “So much that 90% of the data in the world today has been created in the last two years alone,” said IBM. This vast amount of content is created from IOT devices and sensors, social media posts, transaction records, and GPS signals, among many other items.

The increase in data production is fuelled by multiple factors, including the vast array of connected devices, faster Internet speeds, and the increased quality of media content.

Gartner stated that there were 6.4 billion connected “things” in 2016, a 30% increase in devices compared to 2015. More devices mean more data sharing and consumption. This is coupled with increases in connectivity speeds, particularly from fibre providers and mobile network operators, which makes uploading and downloading data faster, cheaper, and more convenient. Increases in the file sizes of media content also plays a part, with high-resolution photos taken by smartphones uploaded to sites like Facebook and Twitter daily, and 4K video becoming more accessible on platforms like Netflix and Youtube.

As the amount of data we produce increases, it becomes important to keep a copy of valuable files offline. If disaster strikes a cloud provider or online service – such as a hacking or ransomware attack – having an offline copy of vital documents or sentimental media can lessen the impact. A basic example is your photos on Facebook. If Facebook was struck by a monumental event which caused the social media platform to be wiped, are you confident that you would be able to access copies of your favourite pictures?

If backing up files offline is not a viable option, you should consider creating redundancy by using multiple cloud service providers for storing valuable data. When selecting a cloud provider, an important aspect to consider is the security features it offers. Ensure that the provider offers solid privacy protection and management, and that your data is encrypted. This will help prevent it from falling into the wrong hands if something goes wrong. Using an encryption tool to secure your data before sending it to be stored online is another options users can consider to ensure their data is safe.

The cloud is the future

There is no doubt that cloud-based storage and services will continue to thrive, with online services like Gmail, Facebook, Netflix, Wordpress, and many more used daily by consumers with Internet access.

Physical devices are also becoming more reliant on cloud-based services to operate. This includes Google’s Chromebook – which does not rely on a large amount of local storage – Seagate’s Amazon Drive hard drive – which automatically backs up data to Amazon’s cloud – and Apple’s icloud service – which will automatically store the photos you take with an iphone online.

As your cloud usage grows, keep in mind that the security of your data and the ability to access it in the event of a disaster are important factors to consider before uploading your files. ■