Disaster Prevention Planning Kit Essential Tools to Help Your Company Survive A Disaster

Transcription

1 Disaster Prevention Planning Kit Essential Tools to Help Your Company Survive A Disaster By Scott Beck, President, BeckTek Phone:

2 Congratulations! From the Desk of: Scott Beck President, BeckTek You now hold in your hands information that could save your company thousands of dollars and untold aggravation. You are one of the FEW executives smart enough to realize an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure when it comes to protecting one of THE MOST critical assets your business owns: its data. For that, I congratulation you. In our experience, most companies are horribly inept at backing up and protecting critical data things like important legal documents, communications you d never want to lose, client databases (and contact information), or work documents and products that have taken YEARS to collect and create. All of that can be GONE in an INSTANT due to something as simple as a hard drive failing in a server or a malicious virus being introduced to your network and this happens every single day to companies across Canada who operate under the false sense of that could never happen to ME. That s why it s extremely important that you take a moment to review the information enclosed with this Disaster Prevention Kit. I would URGE you to say Yes to the FREE Disaster Prevention Audit offered there is no cost or obligation for this service and, in the end, you ll know with absolutely certainty if ALL of your data is being backed up in a way that could be restored quickly in the event of an unforeseen disaster. If our audit reveals that it is NOT (which is often the case), you have the opportunity to correct this gaping hole before a disaster happens. The full details are enclosed. Fair Warning: You must respond to this FREE Disaster Prevention Audit by January 15 th,2014 or we ll be forced to withdraw this offer. This service is free but takes several hours to perform; therefore we cannot leave this offer open forever. Of course, if you have any questions, please call me direct at Dedicated to your success,

3 The 10 Disaster Planning Essentials For A Small Business Network If your data is important to your business and you cannot afford to have your operations halted for days even weeks due to data loss or corruption, then you need to read this report and act on the information shared. A disaster can happen at any time on any day and is likely to occur at the most inconvenient time. If you aren t already prepared, you run the risk of having the disaster coming before you have in place a plan to handle it. This report will outline 10 things you should have in place to make sure your business could be back up and running again in the event of a disaster. 1. Have a written plan. As simple as it may sound, just thinking through in ADVANCE what needs to happen if your server has a meltdown or a natural disaster wipes out your office, will go a long way in getting it back fast. At a minimum, the plan should contain details on what disaster could happen and a step-by-step process of what to do, who should do it and how. Also include contact information for various providers and username and password information for various key web sites. Writing this plan will also allow you to think about what you need to budget for backup, maintenance and disaster recovery. If you can t afford to have your network down for more than a few hours, then you need a plan that can get you back up and running within that time frame. You may want the ability to virtualize your server, allowing the office to run off of the virtualized server while the real server is repaired. If you can afford to be down for a couple of days, there are cheaper solutions. Once written, print out a copy and store it in a fireproof safe, an offsite copy (at your home) and a copy with your IT consultant. 2. Hire a trusted professional to help you. Trying to recover your data after a disaster without professional help is business suicide; one misstep during the recovery process can result in forever losing your data or result in weeks of downtime. Make sure you work with someone who has experience in both setting up business contingency plans (so you have a good framework from which you CAN restore your network) and experience in data recovery BeckTek. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Page 1 of 3

4 3. Have a communications plan. If something should happen where employees couldn t access your office, or use the phones, how should they communicate with you? Make sure your plan includes this information including MULTIPLE communications methods. 4. Automate your backups. If backing up your data depends on a human being doing something, it s flawed. The #1 cause of data loss is human error (people not swapping out tapes or external hard drives properly, someone not setting up the backup to run properly, etc.). ALWAYS automate your backups so they run like clockwork. 5. Have an offsite backup of your data. Always, always, always maintain a recent copy of your data off site, on a different server, or on a storage device. Onsite backups are good, but they won t help you if they get stolen, flooded, burned or hacked along with your server. 6. Have remote access and management of your network. Not only will this allow you and your staff to keep working if you can t go into your office, but you ll love the convenience it offers. Plus, your IT staff or an IT consultant should be able to access your network remotely in the event of an emergency or for routine maintenance. Make sure they can. 7. Image your server. Having a copy of your data offsite is good, but keep in mind that all that information has to be RESTORED someplace to be of any use. If you don t have all the software disks and licenses, it could take days to reinstate your applications (like Microsoft Office, your database, accounting software, etc.) even though your data may be readily available. Imaging your server is similar to making an exact replica; that replica can then be directly copied to another server saving an enormous amount of time and money in getting your network back. Best of all, you don t have to worry about losing your preferences, configurations or favorites. To find out more about this type of backup, ask your IT professional. 8. Network documentation. Network documentation is simply a blueprint of the software, data, systems and hardware you have in your company s network. Your IT manager or IT consultant should put this together for you. This will make the job of restoring your network faster, easier AND cheaper. It also speeds up the process of everyday repairs on your network since the technicians don t have to spend time figuring out where things are located and how they are configured. And finally, should disaster strike, you have documentation for insurance claims of exactly what you lost. Again, have your IT professional document this and keep a printed copy with your disaster recovery plan BeckTek. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Page 2 of 3

5 9. Maintain Your System. One of the most important ways to avoid disaster is by maintaining the security of your network. While fires, floods, theft and natural disasters are certainly a threat, you are much more likely to experience downtime and data loss due to a virus, worm or hacker attack. That s why it s critical to keep your network patched, secure and up-to-date. Additionally, monitor hardware for deterioration and software for corruption. This is another overlooked threat that can wipe you out. Make sure you replace or repair aging software or hardware to avoid this problem. 10. Test, test, test! A study conducted by Forrester Research and the Disaster Recovery Journal found that 50 percent of companies test their disaster recovery plan just once a year, while 14 percent never test. If you are going to go through the trouble of setting up a plan, then at least hire an IT pro to run a test once a month to make sure your backups are working and your system is secure. After all, the worst time to test your parachute is AFTER you ve jumped out of the plane. Want Help In Implementing These 10 Essentials? Call For A FREE Disaster Recovery and Backup Audit. We will come onsite to review your current backup systems to make sure ALL your data is being backed up up correctly and in a useable format. We ll also make sure your data isn t corrupt and look for any unforeseen problems that might be brewing. Call us today at OR info@becktek.ca to request your FREE Disaster Recovery and Backup Audit 2013 BeckTek. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Page 3 of 3

6 Disaster Planning Checklist Important! This checklist should only be used as a starting point for your Disaster Recovery Plan. This is in no way complete; we highly recommend you engage with a professional IT firm to map out a complete Disaster Recovery Plan for your business. Risk Assessment: Define all critical functions, systems, software and data in your organization. Prioritize the above items in order of importance to your business (mission critical to minor) based on which ones, if destroyed, would have the greatest negative impact on your business. Create a document that outlines your current IT infrastructure (network documentation) so another IT person or company could take over easily if your current IT person wasn t available, or could assist in the recovery of your IT infrastructure in the event of a disaster. Determine the RTO (recovery time objective), RPO (recover point objective) and MTO (maximum tolerable outage) for every critical function and system in your business. Identify all threats that could potentially disrupt or destroy the above mentioned data, systems, functions, etc. and the likelihood of those threats. Mitigation And Planning Strategies: Create an IT Assets Inventory list and identify all the functions, data, hardware and systems in your business. Identify all potential disasters and threats to these systems and functions. For each mission-critical system or function, brainstorm ways to minimize, avoid or limit the damage done. For the most likely disasters, create a disaster recovery plan specific to what damage could be done (tornado flattens your office, city evacuation, virus attack, etc.), and identify who will be responsible for executing the plan (your disaster recovery team). Identify a recovery plan and timeline for each function, and prioritize these functions by the order in which they need to be recovered if multiple missioncritical functions were affected. Create a backup strategy for your data and systems. Create a testing and validation strategy, and schedule tests for your backups. Define your communication plan in the event of a disaster to employees, clients, vendors and the media. Create a break the glass document that contains instructions on what to do if a key executive dies, is disabled or is otherwise unavailable for a long period of time. Review your current insurance policy to make sure you have sufficient coverage to replace the assets in your organization BeckTek. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Page 1 of 2

7 Define a media communication strategy (how you will communicate with the press if a disaster happens). Summarize this into a disaster recovery plan and brief the disaster recovery team on the plan. Schedule a periodic meeting to review and update the plan with your disaster recovery team BeckTek. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Page 2 of 2

8 Disaster Recovery Scorecard There are 3 steps to this process: 1. Identify all data and IT-related functions (like credit card processing, documents on your file server, member web portal, a CRM system, critical applications, etc.) you have in place. 2. Classify the importance of the data and functions you ve identified. 3. Apply an appropriate backup and disaster recovery plan to match the value and importance of each asset. Use the following rating system on the impact to your business if you suffered a significant outage or complete loss of the data and processes you ve identified: 0% = Zero Impact 20% = Annoying but Recoverable 40% = Minor Damage with Loss 60% = Disaster with Considerable Loss 80% = Major Disaster with Significant Loss 100% = Total Loss When assessing costs, be sure to factor in loss of tangible sales, client goodwill, costs for rekeying (typing) the data (or any other recovery costs) as well as legal costs associated with failure to deliver on contractual obligations, potential lawsuits, etc. Data Or Business Function If you lost access to this data/functionality for a week or more, what impact would it have on your business? If you lost this data/functionality permanently, what impact would it have on your business? Estimated Cost (Include cost of recreating data, entering it, loss of business, etc.) Accounting Information Client Data Files (CRM) , Calendar, Contacts Contracts And Legal Documents Custom Software and Code Web sites and content Shared Office Documents (Word & Excel) Video and Audio recordings Business Dependent Software Total Costs: 2013 BeckTek. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Page 1 of 3

9 How often do you perform a full back up? Determine Your Risk Score How often are your backups tested and validated? Every hour Every day Every day Weekly + 50 Weekly Monthly Monthly Never Do you keep paper records (or scans) you could reference as a source for re-entering lost data? Is your data centralized onto on server or location or scattered across multiple devices and locations? Yes Consolidated No Scattered Who has access to your computer network? (Check all that apply) How are your backups done? Trusted, computer-savvy employees Automatically, offsite Trusted IT support company - 50 Manually by a skilled IT person + 50 Unskilled workers/transitional staff Manually by the office go to tech person Cleaning crew, maintenance Not sure Where is your data stored? How long do you keep a copy of your data? Don t know Forever On tape drives, USB devices One year - 50 Onsite hard drive - 50 Under a year + 50 Offsite in the cloud We use the same tape/device daily Do you live in an area or office building that has experienced any of these disasters OR that has a high potential for one of these disasters to occur? (Check all that apply) Do you or any of your employees have the ability to do the following? (Check all that apply) Tornado, hurricane or severe storm Download files from the Internet Earthquake Install non-company approved software Terrorist attack Delete files from the server Fire/problem with another tenant Access your server remotely Flood Create/change their own password Do you store sensitive data that must be protected by law? (Medical records, credit cards, social insurance numbers, financial data, etc.) Do you have a trusted, professional IT person or firm monitoring your network DAILY for security threats and failed backups? No No Yes Yes Do you routinely download and backup all data stored on 3 rd party cloud applications (web site files for example)? Do you have a break the glass document for what should happen if a senior executive dies or is disabled? Yes No No Yes How old is your server and/or other workstations that contain critical data? Do you have the following in place (check all that apply): Under a year old Signed, acceptable use policy & training years old + 50 Monitoring software for the network years old Mobile device policy and monitoring Over 4 years old Up-to-date anti-virus & threat monitoring A firewall that is monitored & updated Regarding disaster recovery and business continuity, check all that apply: You DO have a written disaster recovery plan You DON T have a disaster recovery plan You review & update your plan regularly You DON T update your plan You conduct periodic tests of your plan You DON T test your plan ever You DO have an inventory of assets for insurance You DON T have an inventory of assets BeckTek. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Page 3 of 3

10 Scoring: 0 Or Less: Low To No Risk You either don t have very much critical data on your computer or your backup plan is well designed. If this exercise revealed one or two areas you are NOT securing well, you now have the opportunity to resolve those areas immediately : Medium Risk Depending on what data is compromised, you will most likely be able to recover it without major catastrophic costs or consequences. HOWEVER, there are certain areas that are more important than others. For example, if you had sensitive data lost or stolen, the consequences from that could be extensive in the form of legal fees, lost customers, lost market share, a harmed reputation and possibly even a lawsuit. 200 Or More: High Risk Your business is extremely vulnerable to various data-erasing disasters, and there is a high chance that you would NOT be able to recover it at all. It is imperative that you strengthen your current backup, security and disaster recovery plan immediately. 93% of companies that lost their data for 10 days or more filed for bankruptcy within one year of the disaster, and 50% filed for bankruptcy immediately. (Source: National Archives and Records Administration in Washington) Final Score: 2013 BeckTek. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Page 3 of 3

11 Your Working Today Or You Don t Pay 100% Money Back Guarantee We guarantee that we ll be able to get all your data restored and your network back up and running again in 4 hours or less. If we fail to do this, we will pay you $100 for every 30 minutes over that time we fail to get you operational. If we fail to restore your network within 8 hours, we will refund you the last three months of backup service you ve paid us. And if we are unable to restore your data due to an error on our side, we will refund a full year of backup services to you. No other IT company in Atlantic Canada will put this type of guarantee on their services. Why? Because they aren t as confident as we are; unlike our competitors, we guarantee our ability to RESTORE your data and network to full working order. info@becktek.ca F:

12 ***VOUCHER*** How To Make Sure A Hard Drive Failure, Virus, Disgruntled Employee Or Other Disaster Doesn t Destroy Everything You ve Worked So Hard To Achieve In Your Business Our FREE Disaster Recovery and Backup Audit Will Reveal If Your Computer Network And Data Is Truly Safe And Protected From These And Other Data-Erasing Disasters If your computer network crashed or the data it holds was erased or corrupted due to a virus, hard drive crash, fire, flood or some other random, unforeseen disaster, how confident are you RIGHT NOW that your systems could be back up and running again FAST? Most CEOs and executives don t know the answer to that question and hope that they actually could survive a disaster. And with so much misinformation out there on data backups, it s no wonder that MOST businesses are without a solid backup process and are completely vulnerable to data loss and extended downtime. Hope Is NOT A Good Strategy When It Comes To Your Company s Data! It s absolutely foolish to allow such an important aspect of your business to go unprotected especially since it s SO EASY to put systems in place to make sure you never lose critical data or systems. That s why I d like to extend to you a Free Disaster Recovery Audit. At no charge, we will come to your office and Conduct a comprehensive inspection of your computer network to accurately determine what data you have and where it s stored. Why should you care? Because many companies unknowingly miss important files on laptops and workstations and/or spend a lot of money backing up employees personal MP3 files and vacation photos. Audit your current backup method to pinpoint dangerous lapses in the process and determine if you are backing up system files, settings, programs and operating 2013 BeckTek. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Page 1 of 3

13 system software as well as the file and folder data; if you re not, you ll be surprised to know that you ll need to rebuild your servers and workstations from the ground up BEFORE you can even restore the data a process that could cost you a lot of money and take days to perform. Present you with a Report Of Findings that will detail what data you have, problems with your current backup (if any are found) and recommendations on how to better protect yourself. All your questions will be answered in plain English. We know everyone has a different level of risk tolerance, and we want to make sure all the risks you re taking with your data are by choice and not because of miscommunication or accident. Depending on what we discover, we ll either give you a clean bill of health or we ll reveal gaps in your data backup that could prove disastrous. Either way, you have nothing to lose except the uncertainty about whether or not you could quickly recover from a major data disaster. And if it s appropriate, we ll provide you with an action plan for further securing your data with our RestoreIT Backup Service. There is no cost or obligation; however, you must schedule your Free Disaster Recovery Audit by January 15th. Otherwise we ll be forced to withdraw this offer; this service is free but takes several hours to perform. Therefore we cannot we cannot leave this offer open forever. Of course, if you have any questions, please call me direct at Dedicated your success, Scott Beck President BeckTek 2013 BeckTek. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Page 2 of 3

14 Yes! I Want To Make Sure My Network And Company s Data Are Safe From Harm Please sign me up for a FREE Disaster Recovery and Backup Audit so I can make sure my computer network and data is truly safe and protected from data-erasing disasters. I understand that I am under no obligation to do or to buy anything by requesting this audit. I further understand that these audits are being made available on a first-come, first-served basis. Please Provide the below information be or complete and fax this form: Your Name & Title: Company: Address: City,Prov,Postal Code: Phone: Address: Number of PCs: Fax To: info@becktek.ca This information MUST be completed and faxed back or ed to our offices by: January 15, BeckTek. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Page 3 of 3