The Benefits of Online Backup

Almost every business today depends at least to some extent on the data stored in its PCs, and that is true even for companies with client-server networks. Research compiled by a leading data management company shows that data loss costs businesses some $12 billion a year, and that almost 80% of all mission-critical corporate information is stored on PCs, not servers. In fact, one in four PC users suffers a data loss every year.

Many things can cause data loss, but the two most common are hardware failure (44%) and human error (30%) - and what small business can say it is immune to either of those possibilities?

The obvious move to protect against critical data loss is simple: Back it up. Most of us know that, but how many of us do it on a regular basis? Industry experts say not enough, and they offer several reasons why:

• Businesses don't understand how important backups are because they haven't had a disaster happen to them - yet
• They don't know how to do it
• They know how but don't remember to do it
• They know how but find it too time-consuming, so they don't bother

If you fall into any of those categories, a remote backup service might offer the right solution for you.

Online backup services promise ironclad security, easy setup and quick recovery. Because the services are Internet-based, you can access your data 24/7, in most cases from any PC. An added advantage is offsite storage of files, which protects your data should your business be hit by fire, flood or some other calamity.