Best Practices For Cloud-Based Data Backup In Higher Education
Many schools worldwide have started using cloud computing to store, save, and transfer important documents and data. There are plenty of advantages to using this technology – for example, it is usually free and allows the user to access documents from any device in any location.
However, while cloud-based computing is so innovative and convenient, it also comes with its fair share of challenges. Since the data is stored on the internet, the threat of corruption and other cyber attacks is present. This article will discuss a few of the best practices that higher education facilities can implement to create safe and secure cloud-based backups.
Use A Recovery Cloud
To ensure that all valuable files and documents are not lost, if anything were ever to happen to the copies stored on the cloud, many schools use a recovery cloud. In short, a recovery cloud is the same as normal cloud-storage software – the only difference is that it is used to save copies or backups of the original data.
There are plenty of threats and risks that can cause severe damage to a higher education facility when the cloud is used to store valuable data. For example, if a hacker or cyber-criminal were to gain access to financial documents and corrupt the information, the schools could potentially end up in financial ruin. For this reason, backups must be created for these documents.
Only Make Backups Of Essential Data
It is imperative that higher education facilities do not create backups of redundant data or unimportant documents. If anything bad happens to the original files and the school had to gain access to the backups, it can become very tedious to sort through unnecessary information. For this reason, the educational facilities should only create backups and copies of valuable information that cannot be lost or corrupted.
Store Backups Outside Of The Cloud
If you really want to keep all of your valuable data and files safe, you should use different platforms to store them. As we have already mentioned, there is an increased risk of cyber attacks when storing documents on the cloud – if you want to minimize the effects of losing these documents, you should keep backups and copies off the cloud. However, it is essential to note that documents stored off of the cloud are susceptible to other threats as well.
Concluding Thoughts
To minimize the effects of losing data stored on the cloud, higher education facilities should use a recovery cloud. This software is exactly the same as normal cloud-storage – the only difference is that it is used to save copies or backups of the original data.
They should also only make backups of essential and valuable data. More so, the schools should store copies of the original documents from the cloud to reduce the threat of cyber attacks.