In addition, we saw how many small businesses
aren’t able to get affordable, reliable, high-speed Internet
access, a big prerequisite for a successful experience with a rented
software application. We also discussed small business owners’
natural reluctance to allow third-party control over proprietary
data.
Many technology companies, straddling the line
between ASPs and traditional Web-hosting Internet Service Providers
(ISPs), have offered online backup capabilities to supplement more
conventional tape backup methods.
Benefits and Risks of Online Backup Services
Aside from not needing to invest in backup
system hardware or media, online Internet backup services promote
how your data go off-site immediately. There’s no waiting for
someone to take media off-site to a remote location and no waiting
for retrieval of those media when you need to restore data.
Online Internet backup providers insist that
they have adequate security controls to ensure that the data you
entrust to them are safe. However, for largely the same reasons the
ASP model of renting software is not quite functional, I recommend
that most small businesses proceed extremely cautiously with
any online Internet backup service. With all the dot-com business
failures and security breaches in the past year or two, I don't see
much peace of mind in contracting for online Internet backup
services.
Online Backup Services Action Items
Are you currently using an online backup
service as your primary means of system backup?
Are you aware of the pros and cons of
online backup service?
How financially stable is your online
backup service provider? How do you keep abreast of their status?
What security measures are in place to
protect your data both while it's in transit and while the data is
on their server?
What kind of Internet access account and
bandwidth do you have to maintain to be able to use your online
Internet backup service provider?
How financially stable is the ISP that
provides your Internet access?
What happens to your data in the event that
your online backup service provider goes out of business?
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