SAFEGUARDING YOUR DATA
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​One of the most important things you can do with regards to your data is to make regular backups. You never know when something may happen to it. Many things can go wrong such as it can become corrupted, mistakenly deleted, or the computer may get a virus, crash, or even be stolen or subject to some other catastrophe. One never knows when this will occur and it can create a definite sinking feeling when it does!
We recommend that you have procedures in place to perform regular backups of your data. Additionally, periodic backups should be stored in an off-site location for additional safeguarding. It is at your discretion regarding when the backups take place but in making this decision consider how long it will take you to recreate the data that has been entered since the last backup took place. In most cases you will want to perform a daily backup. You will also want to determine the frequency of storing a backup off-site. Again, this will depend upon the amount of data that you process. Weekly or monthly may be frequent enough to satisfy this requirement.
In addition to making backups and having an off-site storage location for periodic backups, it is imperative that you confirm from time to time that the data is indeed being backed up. Just because you have inserted the cd, thumb drive, or whatever backup media you choose, it does not guarantee that a good copy of the data is being stored on it. This should be tested on occasion to confirm so you are not left with an unfortunate surprise should you need to restore the backup.
