Disaster recovery and data protection

An effective backup strategy takes equal account of both perspectives.

Companies generally pursue two different directions when it comes to strategies concerning the backup and recovery of their data. While disaster recovery strategies, on the one hand, are directed towards protecting the whole system, by contrast the area of data protection addresses individual data. An effective strategy takes equal account of both perspectives.

Small and medium-sized companies can gain more flexibility through integrated solutions, which unite disaster recovery and data protection.

Data breaches – to prepare or not to prepare? The answer is simple.

All data breaches have two things in common: the need for prompt resolution and the need for a robust preparedness plan. Healthcare institutions especially should heed the call for an incident response plan because it provides the best preventive medicine to minimize financial and reputational risks.  So PLAN, keeping in mind:  People, the Law, and Action, with No time to waste.

People – Define the responsibilities of a coordinated incident response team. Don’t act alone. A good response team should include key internal players (In-house Counsel, IT, Compliance/Security, HR and Public Relations), as well as outside experts who confront data breaches on a regular basis (trusted Attorneys, Forensic Analysts and Fraud Monitors). These external experts can help restore key business functions, preserve crucial forensic evidence, strengthen data security, address victims’ needs, and communicate effectively with regulators and the public.

Digital Agenda: Commission consults on practical rules for notifying personal data breaches

Brussels – The views of telecoms operators, Internet service providers, Member States, national data protection authorities consumer organisations and other interested parties are being sought by the European Commission on whether additional practical rules are needed to make sure that personal data breaches are notified in a consistent way across the EU. The revised ePrivacy Directive (2009/136/EC), which entered into force on 25 May 2011 as part of a package of new EU telecoms rules, requires operators and Internet service providers to inform, without undue delay, national authorities and their customers about breaches of personal data that they hold (see IP/11/622 and MEMO/11/320). The Commission wants to gather input based on existing practice and initial experience with the new telecoms rules and may then propose additional practical rules to make clear when breaches should be reported, the procedures for doing so, and the formats that should be used. Contributions to the consultation are welcome until 9th September 2011.

Should I scan or should I store?

By Andrés Bruzzoni

With the rise of the digital era, many companies are scanning their old paper files and accessing them through their computers. After all, it is a fast and easy way to access any of their records. But when is it the right option to run this kind of project, and when is it better to keep the hard copy securely stored off-site?

Digitization is Different than Digital Preservation: Help Prevent Digital Orphans!

The following is a guest post by Kristin Snawder, a 2011 Junior Fellow working with NDIIPP.

USB-drive Graveyard, by Ben and Laura Kreeger, on Flickr

“If it’s scanned, then it’s preserved, right?  I mean, it’s in the computer now so that’s all I need to do!”

I’ve heard this response when I ask if something is digitally preserved and it raises concerns.  Lumping scanning together with digital preservation causes confusion and I want to take this opportunity to shine a light on some of the differences between the two.

Scan all you want, but think about preservati­on, too.

While scanning can be a prelude to digital preservation, the two are distinct.  It is quite possible to launch a scanning project, perhaps with temporary funds, and stop when everything is digitized.  So now what about those poor digital files sitting on a hard drive somewhere?  Do we forget about them?  The answer, sadly, may be yes.  As a colleague put it, these files are now orphans with no one to watch over them and ensure their future.