In 2006, British mathematician Clive Humby stated, “Data is the new oil. It’s valuable, but if unrefined it cannot really be used. It has to be changed into gas, plastic, chemicals, etc. to create a valuable entity that drives profitable activity; so must data be broken down, analyzed for it to have value.”
In a way, he’s right. With technology advancing faster than ever before, companies can use data as a necessary fuel to keep their business running in today’s environment.
Here, we’ll explore three ways your business can improve data management. If you still have questions about how your company handles data, please reach out to our experienced team of technology specialists. We’re always happy to help.
Data is Vital to the Continued Growth and Operation of Your Business
Think about the amount of raw data your business collects on an annual, quarterly, or even daily basis. That information provides valuable insights that can potentially help you determine new products and services to offer or areas where improvement is needed.
But that makes your important data a valuable – and possibly vulnerable – resource that requires the utmost protection. Unprotected data opens up a slew of opportunities for cybercriminals. The impacts of a ransomware attack to your company could include temporary or permanent loss of company data, financial loss, and damage to your company’s reputation.
According to a 2021 mid-year report from cybersecurity company SonicWall, ransomware has increased over the past year by 62%. In 2020, the FBI annual Internet Crime Report stated that it received roughly 2,500 ransomware complaints—about a 20% increase from 2019. Even when a company pays the ransom, though, data recovery is not always guaranteed.
So, what can your business do to avoid becoming a statistic?
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3 Steps That Can Help Your Business With Data Management
Even if you question the accuracy and relevance of the phrase “data is the new oil,” there’s no doubt that the huge amount of data your business collects makes it potentially your most valuable resource. Here are three steps you can take to make sure private data and personal data – yours, your business partners, and your customers – remains safe, secure, and accessible.
1. Malware Detection
Every type of malware that hacks into a computer has a unique nature—whether it has a code attached to it, or how it affects files throughout your computer. Some malware scanners are connected to the cloud, which assists in identifying these codes and either confirming or denying a file’s entry into a system. Other anti-malware programs establish restrictions on downloaded files to prevent malware attacks. It has certain recognized rules that reject the files that violate them.
2. Data Protection
Once detection programs identify malware, anti-malware software removes it to prevent it from installing and causing further damage to your computer. If the same type of file reaches your computer, the software will automatically get rid of it. Even though it may seem complicated, malware protection software can remove harmful files within seconds, and you can rest assured that it will continue to protect your computer and any sensitive data on it.
3. Disaster Recovery
Say that your computer doesn’t have any anti-malware software installed (for the record, that’s not a good idea), or for some reason or another, whomever sent harmful files to your computer was able to bypass the software you do have. Although these incidents are less common today, they can still happen, and salvaging all the stolen data isn’t always possible.
Fortunately, there are disaster recovery services that can help you plan for the worst that can happen, and mitigate the damage as much as possible. A common plan involves storing copies of your data in an off-site location that is unaffected by the attack, so you can retrieve it and replace the stolen data. Organizations can also transfer its computer processing to that remote location to keep from disrupting operations.
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Verdant TCS Can Help Your Business Manage and Protect Data
Like oil, data is a valuable resource, and excessive leakage could lead to disaster. But there are steps you can take to protect your company and your customers from cyberattacks.
At Verdant TCS, we have more than 35 years of experience providing reliable disaster protection and recovery services for leading banks and many other businesses. Our Verdant SafeLink technology can observe patterns in data files and identify behaviors that seem suspicious, as well as whitelisting, blacklisting, and backup data protection.
Another solution we offer is our Verdant SecureLink Directory as a Service. It can be integrated seamlessly into your pre-existing system and enable multifactor authentication, adding extra protection for your applications and systems. You will be able to safely provide access and authorization to IT resources. This way, you can rest easy knowing that your computer – and the data collected – has some measure of protection even if it’s lost or stolen.
If you’re not sure where to start, we offer consulting services that will make sure your company knows what to do in the event of a disaster, how much data you have, where your data is located, how much it’s worth, and how to protect it.
Verdant TCS’ reliable software solutions and knowledgeable team can help you make the right decisions so every aspect of your business has the data protection it deserves.
To learn how we can help your business, please call 616-210-1760 or fill out this short form.
References
Danny, C. (2021, May 2). Data was the new oil, until the oil caught fire. TechCrunch. Retrieved from https://techcrunch.com/2021/05/02/data-was-the-new-oil-until-the-oil-caught-fire/
Mark, T. (2021, March 20). “Data is the new oil” (the 2021 perspective). Doing It Digital. Retrieved from https://www.doingitdigital.co.uk/post/data-is-the-new-oil-the-2021-perspective
Amol, M. (2020, December 11). Is Data Really the New Oil in the 21st Century?. Towards Data Science. Retrieved from https://towardsdatascience.com/is-data-really-the-new-oil-in-the-21st-century-17d014811b88
Geoff, B. (2021, March 16). Tipping Point: SonicWall Exposes Soaring Threat Levels, Historic Power Shifts In New Report. SonicWall. Retrieved from https://blog.sonicwall.com/en-us/2021/03/sonicwall-exposes-soaring-threats-historic-power-shifts-in-new-report/
Author Unknown (n.d.) The Impact of Ransomware. Ascend IT Solutions. Retrieved from https://www.ascenditsolutions.com/blog/executive-summary/65-the-impact-of-ransomware
Jyotsna. (2021, February 13). Malware Detection – A Simple Guide In 3 Easy Points. Ascend IT Solutions. Retrieved from https://www.jigsawacademy.com/blogs/cyber-security/malware-detection/#How-does-malware-detection-work?
Author Unknown (n.d.) What is Anti Malware? Comodo Cybersecurity. Retrieved from https://enterprise.comodo.com/what-is-anti-malware.php
Author Unknown (n.d.) What is Disaster Recovery? VMWare. Retrieved from https://www.vmware.com/topics/glossary/content/disaster-recovery