As someone who has helped countless businesses protect their data, I’ve seen firsthand how cloud storage misconceptions can lead to serious problems. A local accounting firm recently contacted me in panic after accidentally deleting three months of critical client records from their Office 365 account. This experience, among many others, showed me why we need to talk about cloud backup seriously but simply.
The advent of cloud SaaS applications such as Microsoft Office 365 led many to believe that regular data backups were no longer necessary. Given that the data stored in the cloud is often essential to a business and it’s customers or required for regulatory compliance, it’s essential to assess the need to back it up.
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The Cloud Storage Myth
The advent of cloud SaaS applications such as Microsoft Office 365 led many to believe that regular data backups were no longer necessary. Last month, one of my clients said, “I thought the cloud meant everything was automatically safe.” After losing important customer documents, they learned this wasn’t the case. Given that the data stored in the cloud is often essential to a business and it’s customers or required for regulatory compliance, assessing the need to back it up is essential.
Which Office 365 Applications Do We Use?
The first step is to take stock of the MS Office 365 applications your organization uses and all the data that currently resides in the cloud. This part of the assessment should consist of accounting for how much storage is required to back up the data and the reason the backup is needed. It’s necessary to assess the size and complexity of these data stores. It will help backup vendors to modify their Azure Backup Service to your situation.
Are Office 365’s Protective Features Enabled?
Last quarter, I worked with a marketing agency that didn’t realize how much critical data they had across different Office 365 applications. The first step is to take stock of the MS Office 365 applications your organization uses and all the data that currently resides in the cloud. One of my clients discovered they had over 500GB of crucial project files scattered across SharePoint, OneDrive and Teams. This part of the assessment should consist of accounting for how much storage is required to back up the data and the reason the backup is needed. It’s necessary to assess the size and complexity of these data stores. It will help backup vendors to modify their Azure Backup Service to your situation.
The risk of accidental and malicious deletions can be mitigated by protective features built into Office 365. Therefore, you should even assess whether there are existing safeguards that can be implemented.
One scenario for data loss is an administrator who has the privilege to delete data. It is common for the admin to handle the removal of storage space and the deletion of accounts when employees leave the company.
Another potential problem is hackers acquiring access to privileged administrator accounts and destroying data on the cloud. This issue can be mitigated with strong security measures. MFA and products like Cloud App Security can dramatically reduce the chance of this happening.
Where Are the Data Security Gaps?
Any risk which can guide to data loss should be included in the discussion, whether it’s employee error, vendor failure or external attacks. Data needed to comply with regulations or support essential business processes will need to be backed up.
Once the first two steps of the assessment are done, the next is to determine whether there are still data security gaps in Office 365. A manufacturing client discovered their quality control documents weren’t being backed up after a system audit we performed. Any risk which can lead to data loss should be included in the discussion, whether it’s employee error, vendor failure or external attacks. Data needed to comply with regulations or support essential business processes will need to be backed up.
Office 365 Backups
A real estate company I consulted with recently faced a crisis when an IT admin accidentally deleted a shared folder containing all their property listings. The risk of accidental and malicious deletions can be mitigated by protective features built into Office 365. Therefore, you should assess whether there are existing safeguards that can be implemented.
One scenario for data loss is an administrator who has the privilege to delete data. It is common for the admin to handle the removal of storage space and the deletion of accounts when employees leave the company.
Another potential problem is hackers acquiring access to privileged administrator accounts and destroying data on the cloud. Just last month, I helped a client recover from a ransomware attack that encrypted their SharePoint files. This issue can be mitigated with strong security measures. MFA and products like Cloud App Security can dramatically reduce the chance of this happening.
If the assessment reveals that Office 365 backups are required, the most practical solution is a third-party cloud-to-cloud backup service. With Office 365 Backup Solutions, organizations can easily schedule periodic backups of records and necessary data like emails and customer information. As an Office 365-wide service, they even bundle together the retention of Exchange emails, OneDrive backups and SharePoint mirrors.
Create Recovery Plans
Backing up MS Office 365 data to a third-party cloud service is just one step in the process of protecting against data loss. A law firm I work with created detailed recovery plans after losing access to critical case files for 48 hours. It’s necessary to carefully craft recovery plans for different events that can trigger the restoration of data from a backup.
Recovery plans should include both an authorization and deployment process to ensure vital data isn’t overwritten or overlooked. I’ve helped numerous businesses create and test these plans to ensure they work when needed most.
Backing up MS Office 365 data to a third-party cloud service is just one step in the process of protecting against data loss. It’s also necessary to carefully craft recovery plans for different events that can trigger the restoration of data from a backup.
Recovery plans should include both an authorization and deployment process to ensure vital data isn’t overwritten or overlooked.
Read also: Guide To Preparing for Microsoft MS-100
The Future of Cloud Backups
Every business organization should periodically assess the need to backup data that resides on cloud services like Microsoft Office 365. One of my technology clients now performs quarterly backup assessments after experiencing data loss during a system upgrade. It’s important to reassess whether data needs backup protection in the future. Thanks to flexible third-party cloud services, backup problems are much easier to manage today.
FAQs
Does Microsoft Office 365 automatically back up all my business data?
How often should I back up my Office 365 data?
What happens if someone accidentally deletes important emails from Office 365?
Are SharePoint and OneDrive files automatically protected in Office 365?
How much does Office 365 backup typically cost?
Can I restore specific files without recovering everything?
Conclusion
Now, knowing what you know about Microsoft 365, you are probably convinced that having a third-party backup is the way to go. While that fact is refutable, you still need to choose the best IT company like Apps4Rent to get the best backup services. I’ve seen their work firsthand with multiple clients, from small businesses to large enterprises. Apart from that, they even provide top-grade Services of Windows Cloud PC Azure and support their clients which makes them superior partners to select for the service. Their 24/7 support team has helped many of my clients recover critical data quickly during emergencies.
