Do You Think
Offsite Backup Software
Is Secure?

Offsite backup software protects your data from many kinds of local disasters such as fire, flood, and theft. While this is a critical component of a backup, you may also be concerned about the security and privacy of your data. When the data is out of your control, you will need assurances that a competitor won't be reading your proprietary business data. Corporate espionage is a real problem.

The answer to this vexing problem is to use high-grade encryption because it is the most effective way to secure your electronic data. Encryption is a mathematical that uses a key to convert your data. This key must be kept secret to protect your data and if you lose the key, you lose your data also. After all, this only makes sense, for if it were possible to recover your data after you've lost the key, then your data wasn't really secure from prying eyes.

When doing an offsite backup, encryption protects your data while it is travelling over the Internet and your data continues to be protected while it is located at the remote data center. Good offsite backup software will give you a choice of encryption levels. As a minimum, you should get 128-bit encryption. A backup service provider should give you proof that his encryption algorithm and implementation is secure. He should be able to assure you that his online backup software does not have any backdoors. You alone have access to the encryption key, and therefore you alone will be able to decrypt the stored data.

Doing an offsite data backup is more secure than a local backup. Depending on the backup provider, a remote backup can be copied to several storage centers around the country. This protects you from a catastrophic event at any one location. Compare this with the minimal security most local backups receive. This kind of security used to be accessible only to large corporations but the broadband Internet makes it accessible to many small businesses and individuals.

The critical part of controlling encrypted data is to safeguard the password key. If two or three trusted employees have access to this key, that is sufficient.

If you are still concerned about the security of using offsite backup software, consider how the risks of an offsite backup compare with the risk of carrying around a laptop. Even if you don't leave your laptop in your car while eating lunch with a client, a simple diversion allows time enough to swipe your notebook. Carrying around sensitive data on a laptop is many times more risky than entrusting data to a remote backup company.

Offsite backup software provides secure, simple, and faster offsite backup storage than traditional backup solutions. The distance factor protects you from a local disaster and quality encryption keeps your data private.

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