UK IT professionals are not testing their data recovery processes regularly

Despite known risks, IT leaders in the U.K. are not taking necessary steps to mitigate them, such as testing data recovery. Only 5% test on a monthly basis, with 20% testing once a year or less, according to the Assurestor report. Among more frequent testers, 60% check data recoverability every six months.

Stephen Young, executive director at Assurestor, described this trend as a “Titanic mindset” in data recovery, where organizations believe they are invulnerable until proven otherwise. He highlighted incidents like CrowdStrike and the British Library to emphasize the high costs of downtime and the dangers of inadequate technology.

SEE: Downtime costs the world’s largest companies $400 billion a year, according to Splunk

Young emphasized the importance of confidence in data recoverability, stating that this figure should be close to 100% for effective reporting to senior stakeholders. He stressed the need for identifying realistic needs, thorough testing, and avoiding compromises on cost.

The biggest reason for the lack of data recoverability planning? Lack of internal support

The Assurestor report points to a key reason why businesses are neglecting data recovery plans despite understanding the risks: lack of internal support.

Executives are not allocating enough resources to IT teams, with respondents citing insufficient financial investment, lack of in-house expertise, and senior support as major obstacles.

Assurestor experts highlighted the impact of inadequate funding on fostering complacency and apathy within organizations. Lack of top-down support can lead to a culture where threats are not taken seriously, affecting the approach and attitude towards data protection.

5 tips for supporting your data recovery process

Assurestor provided recommendations to help organizations prevent severe consequences associated with insufficient data recovery processes:

1. Establish a recovery environment for regular testing without disrupting daily operations.
2. Appoint a chief recovery officer responsible for ensuring adequate data recovery processes and technologies, and reporting on recoverability status.
3. Expand the definition of “disaster” to include cyberattacks to prioritize backup planning.
4. Test data recovery plans and backup technologies regularly and make necessary adjustments.
5. Calculate potential downtime costs and ensure the recovery plan provides sufficient protection.

Young emphasized the non-negotiable need for absolute reliability in systems and data recovery. Any uncertainty can lead to challenges and must be addressed proactively to avoid disaster.

roosho Senior Engineer (Technical Services)

I am Rakib Raihan RooSho, Jack of all IT Trades. You got it right. Good for nothing. I try a lot of things and fail more than that. That's how I learn. Whenever I succeed, I note that in my cookbook. Eventually, that became my blog. 

See Full Bio

IT Support Specialist Server and Storage Specialist Dell MidRange Storage Solutions Specialist