Data Recovery Apps: What They Are and Why You Need Them

Think about your typical workday. How many files, apps, and programs do you have running at any given moment? If you’re anything like the average employee, it’s around eight. Deleting a digital file, document, photo, contract, or email can cause real stress in a remote work environment. Time is lost, trust is eroded, customers are unhappy, and some assets may need to be recreated entirely. With that in mind, robust data recovery apps and software are a must-have.

 

What is a Data Recovery App, and What Does it Do?

Anyone who has ever experienced data loss knows that feeling of utter panic and desperation. At that moment, all you can think about is how to recover that data. If you don’t have a data recovery app, the process will be much more complex, and in some cases, impossible.

A data recovery app runs continuously in the background to back up the data on your devices. Backups are stored in the cloud and are available on-demand. Should you experience data loss for any reason, you can restore immediately from a backup and carry on.

Of course, there are other ways to recover your data, but not all are reliable, cost-effective, or user-friendly. If you don’t have a data recovery app, you could restore your data from a hard drive or optical media backup if you have one. Provided you back up regularly, you might be able to get your data back, but depending on how recent your backup is, you’ll likely be missing some files.

If you don’t have a backup, your files might still be retrievable, but you’ll need to either invest in data recovery software or take your device to a professional to extract the files.

In either scenario, there’s no guarantee that all files are retrievable, and, likely, your file names and hierarchies will not hold—meaning you’ll have the data back, but it’s up to you to sort through it, rename the files, and put them where they need to be. If it sounds incredibly tedious and frustrating, it is. Depending on the volume of data you’re trying to restore, it could be pretty expensive too.

All in all, a data recovery app is a more reliable method of protecting your systems and files as it helps you avoid the anxiety, time, and expense of restoring by other methods.

How And Where Your Data is Stored

Your computers are equipped with hard disc drives (HDDs) or solid-state drives (SSDs), where data is stored locally. Because they are inside your computer, they are protected to a certain degree, but drops, impacts, or liquids can destroy them, especially in the case of HDDs.

SSDs use memory chips similar to the ones that store data on your mobile devices. They are generally more durable than HDDs, but after a few years of constant use, the potential for malfunction increases.

Lost data from SSDs and HDDs are recoverable if they have not been erased or overwritten. Usually, this means that if you delete a file accidentally, it’s still there on the system. The operating system continues to store the files in an inaccessible state until new data overwrites them. Suffice to say, the sooner you act, the better the restoration result will be.

The Most Common Deletion Scenarios and Consequences

There are multitudes of reasons behind why and how data loss happens. However, the most prevalent scenario is human error, and most of that is unintentional.

The most common items that get deleted are files, photos, videos, and communications (https://rewind.com/resources/mailchimp-data-disasters/), like texts and emails.

The root cause of the loss could be:

• Hard Drive Failure. Anything from overheating to physical damage or an aging drive could cause a drive to fail. According to a recent Backblaze study, stocks in this area are relatively low, representing only 1% of data loss.
• Viruses or Malware enter your systems through emails, clicking on malicious ads, or hacked systems. Cybercriminals exploit unpatched software and unprotected endpoints to gain access to your systems. Others use tactics like phishing to convince employees to give up their credentials. 28% of all data breaches involve malware.
• Human Error, resulting in the accidental or intentional deletion of critical files or systems. Some of the biggest data breaches in recent years were the result of human error. Many involve lost devices or employees ignoring cybersecurity rules. By some estimates, human error is responsible for more than 90% of all business data loss.
• Disasters. Loss of physical premises or anything that destroys the physical computer, such as fire, flooding, vandalism, severe storms, power emergencies, earthquakes, and terrorism.

Costs of Data Loss

Whatever the root cause of data loss, the result is the same. The annual cost of data loss to businesses in the United States is difficult to measure. The IBM and Ponemon Institute’s Cost of a Data Breach Report estimates an average of $8.64 million per incident. Almost half of that amount is directly attributable to loss of business—in other words, the time it takes for a company to recover lost data, the work interrupted while systems are being restored, and the loss of trust from customers and the general public.

SMBs that lack the resources to recover from a devastating loss might be forced to shut down as a result.

How to Prevent Data Loss

A proactive approach is critical to data loss prevention. Like the adage tells us, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Being prepared for any scenario helps you avoid downtime and the often outrageous IT effort and expense of restoring your systems to a working state.

Your backup plan is the foundation of this effort. In best practice, you need redundancy—meaning you’ll want more than one copy of your backup, just in case your primary source fails. The 3-2-1 backup methodology suggests three copies, two of which are on different storage mediums and one stored offsite in case you lose your physical premises.

Having a data recovery app is a vital aspect of this plan, as it enables you to restore quickly from the cloud—meaning you won’t have to waste time searching for a backup copy or gaining access to local drives to do so.

Of course, data loss prevention should be built into your company’s DNA and written into policies that all employees are trained on and follow.

Data Loss Prevention Strategies:

• Establish and enforce company policy around data privacy and security.
• Educate your employees on risks and threats.
• Set up role-based access for your systems, so employees only have access to the files and apps they need to do their jobs.
• Enable multi-factor authentication for all users.
• Use a secure password manager, like 1Password.
• Use strong passwords—ideally, passphrases with 12-16 characters.
• Ensure all third-party apps and plugins are up-to-date.
• Read and understand all service agreements with third-party SaaS to be sure they comply with company policies.
• Deploy a regular maintenance and replacement protocol for devices and connected equipment to ensure they comply with current standards.
• Use a cloud backup service for ultimate peace of mind.

The Main Benefits of Using a Data Recovery App Tool

A data recovery app offers many benefits and business advantages. Here are just a few:

• Economy. When you consider the potential cost of data loss—from lost productivity to fines and data recovery cost in the absence of proper backups—a data recovery app delivers incredible value. The low monthly subscription fee pays for itself in peace of mind alone.
• Saves Time. Any downtime due to data loss is costly. The faster you can restore, the quicker you’re back in business. A data recovery app supports immediate restoration, minimizing loss from unscheduled downtime.
• Ease of Use. SMBs don’t always have in-house IT staff. Without a data recovery app, it might be beyond internal capabilities to restore systems to a working state. Data recovery apps are designed to be user-friendly, meaning that just about anybody can be trained to leverage its features.
• Customizable Return Point. Your return point is critical, especially when you’re attempting to recover from a malicious attack. You’ll need to precisely identify a point in time when your systems were clean so that you can restore from that moment. A data recovery app offers that level of customization, minimizing data loss and all associated costs.

Advantages of Rewind

Installing a data recovery app to protect your business systems brings with it a sense of security and peace of mind. Choosing the right solution for your needs is critical, as not all data recovery apps offer the same features.

For ecommerce, financial services, or any online business that relies on an assortment of third-party software, you need to ensure the data recovery app you choose backs up and restores everything, from individual items to entire store themes, third-party app dependencies, APIs, and more.

Many SMBs have found out the limitations of their platforms the hard way (for example, right before Black Friday)

SaaS apps usually follow the Shared Responsibility Model, meaning they are responsible for system-wide backups, and you (the individual user) are responsible for account-level backups. This means they couldn’t restore your individual files, even for a fee.

Rewind maintains a continuous and comprehensive backup of all your files, allowing you to restore a single item of data or your entire file, store, or dataset. Plus, our dedicated support team is standing by to help with any data restores that aren’t quite right.

Rewind’s pricing is easy to understand, and service levels are customizable to your needs. Your subscription cost is based on the number of transactions you do, and you can scale up or down anytime. They offer a dedicated backup solution for popular SaaS platforms, including Shopify, BigCommerce, GitHub, Trello, and more.

All in all, Rewind delivers on every value point: it’s economical, easy to use, and provides you with the peace of mind you need so you can focus on what you do best.