INTELLIGENT CABLING
2. Planning for all contingencies.
The fluidity of access that is so critical
to enhanced workplace productivity
and telecommute poses challenges to
infrastructure security. A wide range of
devices have to be monitored and separate
rules defined for access from multiple
touch points.
Infrastructure and process of
analysing digital threats
Experts believe that more than infallible
security, enterprises need to focus on
better response to possible threats. Thus,
systems that are capable of learning
and adapting are the most sought after
solutions of the future.
A typical analysis of existing security
covers the following steps:
1. Scoping of the infrastructure to
understand its weaknesses and
vulnerabilities. This dictates the
upgrades and replacements needed
to strengthen the foundation of the
digital business.
2. Research and evaluation. Here the
threat patterns for businesses in the
industry are studied. Are malware
installations more common or does
DDoS seem to be the major challenge?
If the business has suffered security
breaches in the past, this data can also
prove to be invaluable.
3. The final step pertains to structuring a
security regime. This includes hardware
and software security as well as
background checks of employees. Use of
strong commercially available ciphers,
the purchase of security certificates
and even implementation of a disaster
recovery plan are common practices.
Infrastructure for an effective
data backup plan
Whether technical failure or natural
disaster, backup and disaster recovery
solutions are an absolute necessity for
organisations of all sizes. Putting time
and effort into finding, implementing and
maintaining a good backup and recovery
solution should be your top priority.
According to a recent survey, data loss
is increasing at a rate of 400% per year. An
Sachin Bhardwaj, Director Marketing and
Business Development, eHosting DataFort.
estimated $1.7 trillion is what businesses
stand to squander if they do not invest in
proper data backup. What’s more? Even
in this era of cutting edge technology,
many organisations in the UAE claim that
they do not have any disaster recovery
measures in place. Three steps for an
effective backup plan:
1. Designing the operational
plan. Osterman research has shown that
75% of the data that employees need to
operate productively on a day to day basis
is hosted by email servers in the form of
messages and attachments. Let us not
forget the social media interactions with
followers, clients and influencers that can
prove to be invaluable research. The point
is that everything around a business is a
potential source of data and thus insights.
Backing up only the transaction
records or the preferences of clients is
just not enough anymore. Companies
need to think outside the box. Consider
all digital platforms that puts you in
touch with the people who are vital to
your business. How much of this data is
irreplaceable? How much of this data is
sensitive and should be backed up in an
encrypted database? Without concrete
answers to these questions, a fool-proof
backup plan is not possible.
Is it enough to randomly back data up?
No! Data backup costs money. And thus,
businesses need to be very strategic with
how they go about the process.
Redundancy is important. There has to
be a back-up of the back-up of information
that can’t be recovered if it is lost.
Do not put all your eggs in one basket.
Redundancy in terms of geographical
location is also important. This kind of
foresight mitigates the impact of disasters.
Ensure that mission critical and sensitive
data is backed up in multiple locations.
And is easily accessible to the workforce.
Safety is paramount. Data loss is not
the only problem that enterprises face.
Data breach is another. Enforce security
protocols like passwords and limited access
permission for classified data and keep
yourself and your backups well covered.
3. Testing your systems. Not
testing a backup plan for operational
errors and flaws is the worst mistake
that a business can make. It is important
to give the backup platform a test run
as soon as it is implemented and do so
regularly thereafter.
The key is planning, training, testing,
and regular review of the plan. Do this
and you will survive any trouble that you
might encounter.
Consider all
digital platforms
that puts you
in touch with
the people who
are vital to your
business. How
much of this data
is irreplaceable?
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