| data loss
Title : Data loss
Audience : S.M.E. principals and managers. Non technical
staff with an interest in data loss scenario.
User I.T. Knowledge 3/10
Source : http://www.backupanytime.com/whitepaper.htm
Posted : May 07
Reviewed n/a
Updated n/a
Copyright : backupanytime original content.
Redistribution as is : No permission required (with
credits)
Modification : With written permission from backupanytime.
“Data loss” can be used to describe minor
temporary misplacement of small quantities of data or
permanent loss of vast quantities of data from any media
type. From the point of view of online backup they are
treated equally as the small quantity of data could
be far more important than the bulk loss.
A good way to gain an understanding of data loss it
to examine the causes of same. For the purposes of comparison
we will look at two backupanytime surveys. Both queried
commercial data loss. One in summer 2005 and the other
in 2007. The numbers interviewed were too small for
the results to be considered a scientific mean but they
do collate well with larger studies from the U.S. to
offer a peek at Ireland's data loss demographics.
- Human error 47 %
- Hardware 21 %
- File corruption 13 %
- File infection 12 %
- Theft 4 %
- Weather 3 %
- Hardware 38 %
- Human error 29 %
- File infection 18 %
- Weather 7 %
- File corruption 5 %
- Theft 3 %
Straight off we can see a vast change with hardware
related data loss increasing and human error data loss
decreasing by 17 and 18 points respectively. What is
going on here? Is hardware becoming terribly unreliable
while human become super efficient. Yes and no. With
the ongoing need for cheaper, larger and faster hard
drives the quality is definitely coming down. If you
owned a computer in the 80s you would know that back
then the hard drive alone cost more than several computers
today. It didn't spin very fast and didn't offer much
storage space. It did however stay running for beyond
the computers intended use. Hardware failure has increased
dramatically in recent years and along with is associated
hard drive data loss. It is not just because of quality
following price. In times gone by we didn't carry hard
drives around in the car or briefcase. They weren't
and aren't made for that type of knocking around. Also,
with the advent of miniature USB on the move drives
many people use them for backup. They were never intended
for backup and are totally unsuited to same. This explains
much of the increase in hardware failure blame for data
loss.
It also accounts for the sudden reduction in human
error. If you buy an unsuitable product to do a critical
job and it fails, well yes you see, if you incorrectly
blame the product you are out of the firing line. The
proximate causeof the data loss was human but the most
recent perpetrator is the failed drive.
Another surprise is the reduction in file corruption.
We had expected an increase in data loss due to file
corruption. After all, many more people were in the
Outlook PST time bomb trap. What is the PST time bomb?
Their PSP file had reached 2 gigs and they were using
a version of outlook which could not handle same. It
is possible that since this data is generally retrievable
that the respondents did not consider temporary data
loss to be actual data loss. However, anyone who has
not been able to run their business effectively while
sorting temporary data loss knows well that it is actual
data loss.
Infection was unsurprisingly up. The availability of
spamseal has helped but availability and uptake are
two different things.
Good to see theft down even if the change is moderate.
Please note however that this does not mean a reduction
in reportable crimes. It just means that there was less
data loss as a consequence. It is possible the hardware
theft such as laptop theft was up.
And finally the weather is in trouble again. Data loss
in Ireland as a consequence of weather generally relates
to lighting or flood. Lightening can destroy computers.
Data loss as a consequence however will only happen
if you don't have online backup. Flood also only brings
down companies who do not have on line backup.Give our
mid climate and high availability of online backup,
the weather is a poor excuse for data loss in Ireland.
The causes of data loss in both surveys can happen to
any company or individual. The difference however is
that those with online backup have full protection in
all scenarios listed.
If you found this document helpful you may like to visit
www.backupanytime.com/whitepaper.htm
or our website proper at www.backupanytime.com
If you are a system administrator and would like technical
details please register your interest on our contact
page requesting membership of our private white
paper area for I.T. Professionals.
"If you don't get it on paper,
you probably won't get it"
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