As the business world moves into a new digital age, electronic or digital data is becoming one of the biggest assets that many businesses hold. While it’s still important to have a range of physical assets to create products or deliver services, businesses use digital data more and more for such diverse purposes as training staff, knowing a customer base, and planning for future operations. It can also be used to optimize different kinds of business processes.
One of the biggest problems for businesses is what to do if the vast amounts of digital data that are so important to them are threatened by a disaster or other emergency, or by malicious hacking, cyber-crime or outside intervention. Businesses can choose from several options in order to safeguard their valuable internal data. Some new alternatives can help nearly any kind of enterprise to avoid some of the biggest challenges of a data breach or data loss.
Business Insurance for Data
If the main concern for business is the cost of losing valuable electronic data, some kinds of business insurance policies offer various kinds of payoffs for lost or damaged data and interruptions of IT systems. Specific kinds of policies can cover particular electronic activities such as e-commerce, to minimize the risks of a serious problem with data storage hardware or other parts of a computer system.
Comprehensive Alternatives with Data Backup Solutions
Business insurance for data can help with the potential costs of an IT emergency, but this kind of option won’t really address some of the operational problems that occur when a company loses data. The key here is that for some kinds of businesses, data loss is not just loss of money. In most cases, it immediately impacts business processes in big ways. This is why many businesses are going with comprehensive data backup solutions. These solutions will automatically route data to off-site systems if there is a problem, like a storm or natural disaster. Global supply chain experts and other professionals have found data backup solutions to be absolutely critical in recent international events like major floods and regional disasters. One good example of an overall data backup solution is a system that is programmed to immediately replace a malfunctioning local server with a remote virtual network hardware solution. This will ensure that nothing is lost when a local system crashes, and normal operations can go on just as they did before. The use of a “failback” and “failover” backup system accomplishes these goals and protects a business against serious disruptions from a disaster.
Coming up with an adequate plan for handling potential data loss is one way that companies shore up their IT management plans and prepare for whatever the future holds.
For more on how to safeguard data and protect a business model, call 410-312-7800 to get Maryland business insurance advice from the pros, or for great quotes on any kind of business or umbrella insurance.