Trust Nothing, Backup Everything: Why you need to backup Microsoft 365

When it comes to backing up Microsoft 365 data, less is definitely not more.

Data loss is becoming increasingly common due to cyber threats and human error, and losing critical data can cost companies time and money. According to one report, 60% of small and medium businesses have lost sensitive data. And the downtime that results from lost data can be costly. According to our data, one hour of downtime costs an average of $8,000 for small companies, $74,000 for medium companies, and $700,000 for large enterprises.

That’s why it’s essential for companies to back up all of their data, including critical applications in Microsoft 365.

While some might believe Microsoft 365 is impervious to a breach or data loss, recent reports indicate these applications are vulnerable. That’s largely because of human error. According to one report, 85% of Microsoft 365 users have been affected by a data breach. Of those surveyed, 26% said severe data loss incidents were the result of an employee sharing data through email by mistake.

This is just one of the many ways critical Microsoft 365 data is at risk. Let’s take a look at the reasons why your company should be backing up Microsoft 365 data and how an automated Microsoft 365 backup can simplify the process.

Determining which data to back up is complex

While it might seem beneficial to prioritize data from certain applications over others, it can be difficult to anticipate which data will be impacted when an accidental or malicious deletion strikes. It can also be difficult to determine which data sets are important in both the long and short term. Today’s enterprises are managing 10 times as much data as they were five years ago and many companies are struggling to keep up. According to one report, half of all companies are struggling with data management deficiencies.

Additionally, Microsoft 365 is a highly interconnected ecosystem where applications leverage one another for storage, which makes determining which apps to back up difficult. For example, while Microsoft Teams stores some files in SharePoint, chat files in particular are stored in OneDrive for Business. Failing to backup one application could inadvertently impact another.

Having a Microsoft 365 backup eliminates the need for IT staff to waste precious resources trying to determine which data is worth backing up. Third-party applications like Backupify can backup a range of Microsoft 365 applications including Microsoft Exchange, OneDrive, Teams, and SharePoint Online.

Microsoft 365’s native recovery mechanisms are inadequate

While Microsoft 365 does have a number of mechanisms in place for recovering lost data, the system’s constraints can limit recovery options. For example, items deleted in SharePoint live in the recycle bin for just 93 days. While contacting Microsoft support can extend the recovery window by an additional 14 days, anything outside of this window is lost forever.

Native recovery options also don’t leave much room for customization and oftentimes, the process doesn’t allow for granular recovery. For example, when going the Microsoft customer support route to recover SharePoint data after the 93-day window, users will be unable to recover individual files and must recover the entire site collection.

Employing a Microsoft 365 backup solution like Backupify gives companies more control over the recovery process. For example, when restoring older files from a SharePoint backup, the restore is targeted at the same URL. This means that a restore overwrites whatever data currently exists in the site collection. Backupify enables non-destructive restores of all Microsoft 365 data, giving users the files they need without the threat of data loss.

Selective backups create threat protection gaps

While human error is the number one cause of data loss, one report found that 28% of data breaches involve malware. Cyber threats to data are increasing and when data is compromised during a cyber attack, it can be difficult to recover.

Ransomware attacks are becoming increasingly common and according to one report, even when ransoms are paid, companies might not be able to fully recover valuable data. According to the report, 97% of data encrypted by ransomware was successfully decrypted after paying the ransom. Three percent was lost.

Whether your company is impacted by accidental deletion due to human error or a malicious cyber attack, it can be impossible to determine which data will be impacted. That’s why it’s vitally important to ensure all data is protected from loss with a Microsoft 365 backup that automatically backs up your data. Backupify ensures your data is protected with automatic 3x daily backups.

Ready to ensure all of your data is backed up? Contact us to start using our Microsoft 365 backup solution.