Spencer Heaton—A&S System Consultants
This past year, many businesses, including brokerages, have been forced to move to remote workforce models. This migration and change in network infrastructure hasn’t come without risk.
To aid their businesses with this change, brokers are adopting a cloud-based data access and storage philosophy. Many are using Microsoft 365 products and services (formerly known as Office 365).
But people assume that because they’re using and paying for a well-known solution from a massive vendor like Microsoft, that they’re protected and their data is secure.
But Microsoft doesn’t have our back like that.
It’s important to know if you adopt Microsoft 365 that their service agreement doesn’t hold itself responsible for the integrity or security of your data. They operate under a Shared Responsibility model, which means they’ll protect their applications and infrastructure, but the responsibility of the protection of data stored within Microsoft 365 falls to its users. I.e. you.
Backing up your Microsoft 365 data has long been a must for businesses. With the increase of cyber attacks over the last 12 months, it’s no longer an option—it’s a requirement. But be cautious when you’re choosing a SAAS based backup solution. A number of vendors operate under similar Shared Responsibility models, and many aren’t responsible for recovering your data if ransomware encryption or virus infections infiltrate their solutions.
Backup of a brokerage’s cloud data is just as critical as backups of local data in preventing data loss or business interruption from cybercrime. So protect yourself!
Check out our Suite Hacks for O365 video for more.