World Backup Day: Pledge to protect your digital life

Our digital lives are filled with essential personal information, and it’s easy to forget how vulnerable all that data can be. But if your hard drive crashes, your laptop gets stolen, or you fall victim to cybercrime, the loss can be devastating. Your financial records, your work files, and even years of family photos can disappear in and instance. It’s a nightmare scenario that happens more often than you think. That’s why March 31st is World Backup Day, serving as a reminder that the right backup strategy can save you the frustration, cost, and the heartache of losing information that’s dear to you.

Backing up your data simply means creating copies of your important files and storing them in secure, encrypted locations. This ensures that even if something goes wrong and your data disappears, you’ll be able to recover it. Yet, many people don’t take these important steps to protect their digital lives. Despite all the risks, 20% of people rarely or never back up their data, leaving them vulnerable to irreversible loss.

Common causes of data loss

Human error: This is the number one cause of data loss, according to a report highlighted in PC World. Nobody’s perfect, and we all run the risk of accidents, from deleting files to spilling coffee on a laptop.
Hard drive failure: It happens! Hard drives are a great way to backup, but these devices can and do suffer data loss. Many hard drives fail in less than three years, and it’s been found that the newer drives have shorter lifespans than those manufactured before 2015.
Software corruption: When software or data is damaged, it can become unusable or unreadable. This can be caused by software bugs, hardware failures, viruses and malware, resulting in system crashes or data corruption.
Malware and ransomware attacks: Cybercriminals also deploy malware to lock, steal, or destroy your files. Ransomware is a type of malware that prevents you from accessing your files and demands a ransom for their return.
Natural disasters and theft: Threats like fires and floods, as well as burglaries and robberies, can lead to crippling data loss if all your information is stored in just one vulnerable place.

The 3-2-1 backup strategy

Avoiding common threats can be as easy as 1-2-3, or should we say 3-2-1? By using the 3-2-1 backup rule, you’ll give yourself comprehensive protection against the many forms of potential data loss.

3 Copies: always keep three copies of your data- your original plus two backups.
2 Different Media Types: Store your backups on two different types of media – for example, use an external hard drive and a cloud storage service, like Carbonite. Using encryption is also crucial for protecting against data loss because it transforms sensitive information into an unreadable format.
1 Offsite Backup: Keep at least one backup in a different physical location, like a separate worksite or a safety deposit box.

Backup options to consider

External hard drives
These are great for local backups, but can be vulnerable to theft, damage, and hardware failure.
Cloud backup services
Look for cloud-based solutions that offer encrypted, automatic, and unlimited backup to ensure files are always protected. Carbonite makes it easy to continuously and securely backup all your data with 128-byte protection. And because all backups are stored offsite, in the cloud, you can easily access them anytime, anyplace, and restore them with just a click.
Network-attached storage
A network attached storage (NAS) device is a dedicated file storage system connected to a network, which enables data sharing across various devices.

Why backing up is essential

Protects your important data from hardware failure, cyber-attacks, and accidental deletion.
Ensures that your valuable data is encrypted, secure, and accessible when you need it.
Saves you the time, money and stress associated with attempting to recover lost data.
Preserves your cherished personal memories, like photos and videos, from being lost forever.
Helps maintain business continuity by offering a quick recovery from data loss.
Offers businesses resiliency and compliance across their organization.

Backup action plan

Test your backups regularly: Check that your files are retrievable on a regular basis.

Set a backup schedule: Automate the frequency of your backups according to your needs.

Create a backup strategy: Prioritize which documents, photos, and databases need protection first.

Create a disaster recovery plan: Outline steps for restoring data in case of an emergency.

Use antivirus protection: Secure your system with antivirus protection to prevent malware and ransomware attacks.

Use an offsite, secure, and unlimited solution like Carbonite for cloud backup:

Offers options for individuals and businesses
Automatic and continuous backup: No need to manually backup files
End-to-end encryption: Keeps your data private and protected
Easy file recovery: Restores lost or deleted files with just a few clicks
Multiple device support: Protects desktops, laptops, and external drives

Take the World Backup Day pledge

There’s never been a better time to make backing up your data part of your routine. Make a promise to protect yourself today by taking this official pledge. “I solemnly swear to backup my important documents and precious memories on March 31st.” Then take a few simple steps to get started.

Create your first backup
Try the 3-2-1 backup strategy
Secure your digital life with Carbonite

Backing up your files isn’t just about security, it’s about peace of mind. This World Backup Day, start building your own good backup habits. Protect your files and photos and finances now, because if disaster strikes you may never see them again. Consider this your wakeup call to make data protection a priority. Your future self will surely thank you!

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