Managed Backup Services: Knowing your valuable data – and business – are safe

| 25 April 2019

Data needs a protection plan in today’s business environment

Data is an essential asset to every organisation, from the smallest company to the largest enterprise. However, for its benefits to be realised, it must be simultaneously highly available and completely safe. The challenge of storing and securing data is made ever more difficult by the rapid, concurrent growth of data volumes and IT threats: it has been estimated that nearly 15 billion data records have been stolen since 2013 but only 4% were encrypted[1]. This is set against the backdrop of a changing regulatory landscape, where new guidelines for data storage and security are accompanied by punitive fines for non-compliance. And these are just the known issues. Companies must also mitigate the risk of data loss in the event of unforeseen circumstances such as a disaster or other system failure. With stakes as high as this, IT departments are under pressure to focus their finite resources on data storage and security, which can be to the detriment of other key IT services, especially in smaller organisations. This situation has stimulated the development of sophisticated managed backup services solutions that enable companies to safeguard their business-critical data, ensure regulatory compliance and recover quickly in the event of data loss without impacting their in-house resources.


 

Managed backup services protect business

Scalable managed services will be essential to protect business for as long as data continues its exponential growth. IBM research shows that devices generate approximately 2.5 billion gigabytes (GB) of data across the globe daily[2]. This figure is only set to increase as technology continues to proliferate in every aspect of modern life and generations of ever more tech-savvy individuals join the workforce.

Statistics indicate that escalating data volumes are making it harder for companies to protect their data. 70% of business people have experienced or will experience data loss due to accidental deletion, disk or system failure, viruses, fire or some other disaster, according to Boston Computing Network’s Data Loss Statistics, and nearly half (46%) of all users experience data loss every year, with almost one third (31%) losing all their files. The problem is compounded by the fact there is no single issue to tackle; different causes of data loss appear to impact the workforce equally: 31% of respondents reported a failure of hardware/system, 29% attributed it to human error and 29% held viruses, malware or ransomware responsible[3].

Regardless of the reason for data loss, from disaster or malicious acts to simple human error, the impact can be catastrophic: 60% of companies that lose their data will shut down within six months[4]. The situation is even more precarious for smaller organisations. In a recent study, when asked ‘How long could your business remain profitable if you permanently lost access to essential data?’ only one third of SMEs estimated over three months, and more than half believed they would be unprofitable in under one month[5]. This effectively makes protecting critical data synonymous with protecting the business itself, and in a perfect world, every company would dedicate the necessary resources to make it happen. Unfortunately, we live in the real world, where companies may lack the requisite resources or expertise. This is borne out by research: a Keypoint Intelligence study for Konica Minolta indicated that 36% of companies still run manual backup and data recovery processes[6].

 

A trusted partner is essential

For managed backup services to be truly effective, companies must identify IT partners with a pedigree they can trust, robust technology and the flexibility to create bespoke solutions. After all, a company’s backup system should be as unique as the company itself; there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Yoann Fortini, Team Manager ITS Development at Konica Minolta Business Solutions Europe explains: “As backup management experts we understand how important it is for companies to have reliable, bulletproof disaster recovery processes. Indeed, the future of a company and its employees can depend upon it.” Hence Konica Minolta took the decision, as an experienced IT services provider, to create flexible, sophisticated backup management solutions and services that can be tailored to meet the specific needs of the customers and fulfil their security requirements. They can rest assured that their data is available and safe; IT departments are relieved of a significant and growing burden, and compliance with regulatory measures, including GDPR, is guaranteed through certified data centres in Europe that fulfil highest security standards.

 

Konica Minolta’s approach to managed backup services

The customers’ needs stand at the heart of backup management. Yoann Fortini explains: “We partner with customers to truly understand the nature of their business, their priorities and their existing environment. This makes it possible for us to not only design a bespoke solution but also to minimise business disruption by integrating it as seamlessly as possible – all while enabling customers to retain their established, onsite backup systems.” Konica Minolta’s services are underpinned by a scalable, secure offsite storage location, giving customers enhanced security and immediate access to data when needed. Furthermore, a dedicated team of experienced experts set up, monitor and configure all backups and regularly undertake scheduled tests to ensure full operability.

 

The solutions behind the promise

Konica Minolta provides a highly secure, cost-effective, fully inclusive managed backup service that enables customers to protect critical data, avoid downtime and mitigate risk. This includes maximum safety of sensitive data guaranteed by ultra-secure 128-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) with 256-bit AES (military grade) or 448-bit Blowfish encryption available as an optional extra. In addition, Konica Minolta’s dedicated data centres in Europe adhere to the highest information security standards, including ISO27002, ISO/IEC 27001:2005 certification and Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI-DSS). Customers have quick, reliable and flexible access to data when needed. The solutions are based on robust software such as IASO Hybrid Cloud Backup or equivalent cloud-based software solutions, while backup scheduling is completely flexible and can be configured to meet individual customer needs. The installation and configuration of the solution up to a maximum data limit of 10 GB and follow-up support are included in the fee – storage requirements beyond 10 GB are charged on a per GB basis. Additionally, Konica Minolta’s holistic office IoT Edge IT platform Workplace Hub ties into the backup and recovery solutions. Within the integrated Admin Dashboard, it is easy to retain an overview over backup status and the latest data versions.

 

Konica Minolta’s backup solutions at Elajo

As one of Sweden’s leading electricity, mechanical engineering and energy companies, Elajo has a 900-strong workforce, a turnover of SEK 900 million (approximately EUR 85 million) and offices in 38 cities across Sweden. As the company deals with critical infrastructure itself, having reliable and safe storage for its internal and external data is absolutely essential to its success.

 

Backup management at Sporrong & Eriksson

Sporrong & Eriksson Revisionsbyrå AB is an auditing firm based in Kalmar, Sweden, with 17 experienced and highly skilled employees serving more than 600 small and medium-sized business customers. Due to the nature of auditing, where a large amount of work is carried out at client locations, the highly progressive company wanted a new IT infrastructure that could enable remote working with seamless access to a high number of dedicated, specialised auditing applications, while also meeting the highest security and reliability requirements – especially when it comes to backup management and data recovery systems.

When IT departments are freed from the burden of data backup and recovery, they can put a greater focus on what they do best: delivering strategic initiatives to their organisations. However, managed backup services is not just about freeing up valuable IT resources; it is about gaining the peace of mind that comes with knowing that business critical data is completely safe, both now and in the future.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[1] Gemalto Security; Breach Live Index; 2019; https://breachlevelindex.com/

[3] CSO; With the Bigger Dangers of Data Loss, the Value of Backups is Becoming Prominent; 2018; https://www.cso.com.au/mediareleases/31466/with-the-bigger-dangers-of-data-loss-and-some/

[3] CSO; With the Bigger Dangers of Data Loss, the Value of Backups is Becoming Prominent; 2018; https://www.cso.com.au/mediareleases/31466/with-the-bigger-dangers-of-data-loss-and-some/

[4] CSO; With the Bigger Dangers of Data Loss, the Value of Backups is Becoming Prominent; 2018; https://www.cso.com.au/mediareleases/31466/with-the-bigger-dangers-of-data-loss-and-some/

[5]Cisco; Cybersecurity special report, small and midmarket businesses: Small and Mighty; https://www.cisco.com/c/dam/en/us/products/collateral/security/small-mighty-threat.pdf

[6] Keypoint Intelligence, Infotrends & Konica Minolta, The Workplace Hub Europe Survey, 2018

 

About Konica Minolta Business Solutions Europe

Konica Minolta Business Solutions Europe GmbH, based in Langenhagen, Germany, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Konica Minolta Inc., Tokyo, Japan. Konica Minolta enables its clients to champion the digital era: with its unique imaging expertise and data processing capabilities, Konica Minolta creates relevant solutions for its customers and solves issues faced by society. As a provider of comprehensive IT services, Konica Minolta delivers consultancy and services to optimise business processes with workflow automation. The company further offers its customers solutions and managed services in the field of IT infrastructure and IT security as well as cloud environments. With regard to its office printing solutions, ‘IDC MarketScape: Western Europe Smart Multifunctional Peripheral 2018 Vendor Assessment’ stated that Konica Minolta is ‘recognised globally as a leading smart MFP provider of note’. As a strong partner for the professional printing market, Konica Minolta offers business consulting, state-of-the-art technology and software and has established itself as the production printing market leader for more than a decade in Europe, Central Asia, the Middle East and Africa (InfoSource). In the healthcare sector, Konica Minolta drives digitalisation of clinical workflows and offers a broad range of next-level diagnostic solutions. Its Business Innovation Centre in London and four R & D laboratories in Europe enable Konica Minolta to bring innovation forward by collaborating with its customers as well as academic, industrial and entrepreneurial partners. For its solutions that combine ‘smart service with smart technology’, Konica Minolta was awarded the prestigious ‘Buyers Lab PaceSetter Award for Outstanding Serviceability 2018/2019’ from Keypoint Intelligence. Konica Minolta Business Solutions Europe is represented by subsidiaries and distributors in more than 80 countries in Europe, Central Asia, the Middle East and Africa. With almost 10,300 employees (as of April 2019), Konica Minolta Europe earned net sales of over EUR 2.39 billion in financial year 2018/19.

For more information, please visit http://newsroom.konicaminolta.eu/ and follow Konica Minolta on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter @KonicaMinoltaEU.

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