Cyber Security Awareness Week backs backups

Cyber Security Awareness Week backs backups

MEDIA RELEASE

Auckland, Thursday 30 May 2013 – While the move from hard to soft storage increases convenience for many, the risk of not having a spare copy remains the same. With so much of people's information – from small business accounts to music and treasured family photographs – now stored digitally, making regular backups is vital to prevent irreplaceable losses, according to Chris Hails, NetSafe's cyber security programme manager.

“Computers and hard drives fail, servers crash and there’s still the age old risk of natural disaster or theft. Backing up, or making duplicate copies is absolutely paramount. Following the standard 3-2-1 rule is a great way of ensuring you are covered in almost any event; have three copies on two different storage mediums with at least one copy in a different physical location” says Hails.

Hails says backing up is an easy and effective way to protect yourself and it’s not just from software or hardware malfunctions. “Backups are something people should be doing for all the important things in their life they need to protect, not just computer files. A properly executed backup plan is essentially digital insurance.”

As part of Cyber Security Awareness Week Hails visited Dunedin and spoke to students about Dunedin being a 'backup" of Edinburgh, as well as their best digital-age equivalent to "the dog ate my homework”. The short, light-hearted video is available on www.securitycentral.org.nz.

New Zealand's second annual Cyber Security Awareness Week is running from 27 to 31 May. It is a joint initiative supported by the Government and sponsors , Google, HP, Image Centre Group, Microsoft, Norton, Sophos, Telecom and Trade Me, as well as almost 50 partner companies to raise awareness of cyber security issues.

The Tight 5 of Computer Security
Backing up important information is one of the five keys to staying safe online which are being highlighted in the course of the week, the ‘Tight 5’ are:
• Use strong passwords
• Update everything
• Use a secure wireless network
• Back up your files
• Think before you click

More computer security advice and detail on backups are available at www.securitycentral.org.nz. The week's activities can also be followed on www.facebook.com/netsafe.

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