Protecting data is of paramount importance for companies, but is increasingly challenging due to the complexity of where the information is stored and the sheer amount of data.The loss of vital data can be devastating for ill-prepared companies as it can require a considerable amount of time and resources to recover data and it can also erode customer trust.

Here are six tips companies should adopt in order to protect data and recover it quickly if necessary:

Build and follow a written plan

A broad disaster recovery plan for any business should include written details about data recovery. Every staff person should know their role in this plan, whether it’s always saving their work to the server, or being the one responsible for managing cloud-based backups.

> See also: The backup plan: how to craft the bespoke backup and recovery solution your organisation needs

A written plan should establish the different layers of redundant protection as well as concrete steps that must be taken in the event of a data loss. A formal plan that is discussed and thoroughly reviewed makes it less likely that important data or processes will be overlooked.

Instill automation

Setting schedules of automatic backups and other recovery-related tasks will ensure you remove the risks that come with manual processes. Consider the average smaller to mid-size firm where one person performs backups manually. If that person leaves the firm or even goes on vacation, then will there be an exposure to a recovery gap? Automation that leaves out a human completed task provides companies with added constant protection.

Get SMART about monitoring – SMART stands for 'Self-Monitoring Analysis Reporting Technology' which is a type of monitoring that can monitor the state of hard drives in order to spot imminent failures. It gives the IT staff the chance to backup and replace the drive before it fails, so the business can function as normal.

Look to the clouds

Data recovery plans should utilise multiple methods of data storage for maximum flexibility and redundancy. This means placing some data in the cloud for a scalable and cost-effective solution that will not be impacted by any sort of on-premises disaster. The cloud can make recovery simple and convenient since you can access data through any Internet connection.

> See also: How to improve enterprise backup and recovery

Avoid free recover solutions – If you lose company data, a quick Google search will review many free file and data recovery utilities that promise fast data retrieval. The problem with these programs is they often do not work and can be riddled with malware. They might also corrupt the data during extraction, so companies can end up wasting time and ruining their most valuable asset.

Pick the right recovery provider – Utilise a respected data recovery firm that has the right software and hardware tools to cost-effectively save your data. The company should have demonstrated recovery success and will also describe in detail how any retrieved data will remain confidential. The best vendors will also offer dedicated North American-based customer support, so any process questions can be answered immediately.

Sourced from David Zimmerman, CEO of LC Technology International