From ransomware attacks to data breaches, the financial and reputational consequences of inadequate data protection measures can be devastating.
For many managed service providers (MSPs) and their small and midsized business (SMB) customers, a cyberattack is a “when,” not an “if.” In this blog, we will dive into the significance of World Backup Day, exploring best practices to safeguard against data loss incidents and how to sell your data protection solutions.
Key takeaways
- Backups alone are not enough protection. While they’re a key piece of good cyber hygiene, without comprehensive data protection, they’re not enough to combat evolving threats.
- Fast recovery matters. It’s essential for getting data back and minimizing downtime—which could cost a small business anywhere from $8,000 to $100,000 an hour. As an MSP, your ability to quickly minimize downtime and optimize business continuity is what sets you apart.
The history and significance of World Backup Day
In 1956, IBM engineer Reynold B. Johnson invented the first external hard drive. Then, in the 1960s, Dr. Joseph Carl Robnett Licklider invented cloud storage.
Both individuals served as pioneers of data storage.
In 2011, World Backup Day was established to raise awareness about the importance of data protection and encourage action by promoting regular backups. Data is incredibly valuable, and backups, business continuity and disaster recovery (BCDR) best practices, and responsible data management remain essential components of data protection strategies.
While the day highlights the importance of backups as a fundamental aspect of good cyber hygiene, it also underscores that backups alone are not sufficient in the face of evolving threats.
Your partners rely on you to provide a backup strategy that offers peace of mind. However, it’s equally important to focus on a comprehensive data protection strategy that factors in downtime prevention and data loss prevention to ensure uninterrupted business continuity.
What makes a strong MSP data protection strategy
Data protection is crucial for any business, ensuring that valuable information is safe from unexpected disruptions such as cyberattacks, human error, or system failures. This reality makes a strong data protection strategy a cornerstone of MSP operations, enabling you to deliver reliable and secure services to clients while mitigating risks and maintaining trust.
A comprehensive data protection strategy includes:
- Regular data backups: Implement regular and automated backups of critical data to secure copies in case of accidental deletion, hardware failure, cyberattacks, or other unforeseen events. If you haven’t already, consider shifting from the traditional 3-2-1 backup rule to a more comprehensive 3-2-1-1-0 approach.
Pro tip: Test backups at least twice a month and be prepared to improve the processes as gaps or issues are uncovered. Choosing a backup vendor that offers a hosted service for immutable storage can also be helpful. Backups sent to their immutable storage solution cannot be changed or deleted until a specified time. This solution also allows the organization to have a copy of their backup data stored off-site.
- Compliance with regulations: Ensure compliance with relevant data protection laws and regulations, such as GDPR, HIPAA, or PCI DSS, to protect customer data and avoid legal repercussions.
Download Axcient's 2025 Backup Compliance Handbook for MSPs to explore the most common compliance standards shaping the industry.
- Data encryption: Use encryption techniques to protect sensitive information both at rest and in transit, ensuring that unauthorized users cannot access or decipher the information.
- Cloud security measures: Implement robust security measures for cloud-based services, including data encryption, access controls, and monitoring, to protect data stored in the cloud.
Pro tip: ConnectWise SaaS Security™ serves as a powerful application to manage and monetize Microsoft 365 security.
- Employee training and awareness: Provide ongoing training and awareness programs to educate employees about data security best practices, phishing scams, and social engineering tactics to prevent human errors and insider threats.
- Access control and authentication: Implement strong access controls, user authentication mechanisms, and role-based permissions to restrict unauthorized access to data and systems.
Pro tip: Encourage your clients to use two-factor (2FA), multi-factor (MFA) authentication, or delegated authentication available in ConnectWise Cloud Backup™ for enhanced security. Also, consider segmenting the backup solution into a separate virtual local area network (VLAN). Segmentation and the use of VLANs can help prevent compromised on-premises servers or end user devices, such as workstations or laptops, from attacking or corrupting the backups stored on a different network.
- Data lifecycle management: Establish policies and procedures for managing data throughout its lifecycle, including data retention, archiving, and secure disposal when no longer needed.
- Regular security audits and assessments: Conduct periodic security audits, vulnerability assessments, and penetration testing to identify weaknesses in the data protection infrastructure and address them proactively.
- Security monitoring and incident response: Deploy monitoring tools and security measures to detect and respond to potential security incidents promptly, minimizing the impact of a data breach or unauthorized access.
- Disaster recovery planning: Develop and regularly test a comprehensive disaster recovery plan to ensure quick recovery and minimal downtime in the event of a data loss or system failure.
Fast recovery is essential not just for getting data back but for minimizing downtime, which could cost a small business $8,000 to $100,000 an hour. As an MSP, your ability to minimize downtime and restore business continuity quickly is crucial.
Pro tip: In the event of an incident, prioritize restarting the backup routine immediately. Back up all data to establish a recovery path in case containment or remediation efforts result in data loss. Monitor system restore times closely to ensure they align with your client’s specified downtime threshold.
By incorporating best practices in data protection, you can enhance your cybersecurity posture, protect sensitive information, and position your MSP as a trusted partner in the digital age.
How to use World Backup Day to engage customers and sell data protection
To make the most of World Backup Day, engage customers early and focus on how your backup and data protection solution ensures rapid recovery:
- Educate: Kick-off outreach in early March by informing customers about World Backup Day and the critical role of fast recovery. Share real-world examples of businesses that suffered downtime due to data loss—and how quick restoration made all the difference. Use this guide to accurately assess and communicate the business impact of downtime.
- Consult: Meet with customers to assess their data protection readiness. Help them understand their current time-to-recovery and present solutions that minimize disruption in case of an incident.
- Optimize: Keep customers updated on evolving data protection trends and best practices. Provide ongoing support to ensure their backup processes and strategies align with business needs and compliance requirements.
To help you make the most of World Backup Day, we invite you to explore our FREE marketing templates and resources, including:
- To-customer email templates
- Engaging email signatures
- Social posts
- Product sheets
- And more!
By leveraging these resources, you can effectively empower your customers, drive engagement, and solidify your position as a trusted advisor to your customers.
Tools and solutions to elevate your backup strategy to comprehensive data protection
From cloud-based backup services and disaster recovery solutions to endpoint security tools and everything in between, there is a myriad of innovative tools and solutions available to elevate your backup strategy to comprehensive data protection.
We’re proud to offer comprehensive cybersecurity and backup solutions:
- ConnectWise Backup360™
By harnessing the power of ConnectWise Backup360, you can unlock the full potential of your diverse backup tools, enabling you to enhance gap detection, streamline alarm response efforts, and continuously optimize your clients’ backup posture.
- ConnectWise Security360™
ConnectWise Security360™ aggregates and analyzes data to return an “MSP security score.” This score highlights potential security gaps, shows areas where you can strengthen your and your customer’s security posture, and identifies other actions to improve your score.
If you’re looking for more niche options to suit your needs, we also have individual solutions to choose from:
- ConnectWise SaaS Backup™
A unified portal to secure client cloud app data in Microsoft 365®, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, Microsoft Dynamic 365, Google Workspace, and Salesforce.
- ConnectWise Cloud Backup™
The most intelligent solution for Microsoft 365 data protection that’s purpose-built for MSPs.
- ConnectWise SaaS Security™
The most powerful application to manage and monetize Microsoft 365 security. Enterprise-grade security, simplified.
By partnering with ConnectWise, you can ensure that your clients’ sensitive data is protected, their businesses can continue to operate seamlessly, and they have the peace of mind they deserve.
Explore our Cybersecurity and Data Protection solutions, or reach out to us today and discover how our tools can be the perfect fit for your clients’ needs.
