Ransomware, a damaged disk or an accidental deletion can bring your operations to a halt. The 3-2-1 rule is the simplest way to be prepared.
Losing information is not a distant risk. A ransomware attack, a failing disk, a stolen laptop or a file deleted by mistake can halt invoicing, email or customer service within minutes. The question is not whether it will happen, but how quickly you can recover.
What is the 3-2-1 rule?
It is a simple, proven backup practice that minimizes the likelihood of losing data:
- 3 copies of the information: the original and two backups.
- 2 different media: for example, a local server or NAS and cloud storage.
- 1 off-site copy: if there is a theft, a fire or a flood, that copy stays safe.
Today it is recommended to add an immutable or offline copy that ransomware cannot encrypt or delete even if it manages to get into the network.
How to apply it in your business
- Identify the critical information: accounting databases, documents, email, medical records or in-house systems.
- Define how often you need to back up (for example, daily) and how much information you could tolerate losing.
- Automate the backups so they don't depend on someone remembering.
- Encrypt the backups and protect access with strong passwords and two-factor authentication.
- Test restoring them regularly. A backup that has never been restored is just an assumption.
Backups and personal data protection
If your business processes personal data, Law 1581 of 2012 requires you to adopt security measures to prevent its loss, unauthorized access or unauthorized use. A verified backup scheme is part of that compliance.
At Pronetsys we design and manage cloud backup plans with verification and restore tests. If you want to know how well protected your information is, schedule an assessment.
