Data Protection – There is no doubt saying that the present era is data-driven. Everyone knows that the digital data volume is increasing and its importance for businesses is also growing rapidly. But just in one single workplace data centre, the data is spread out in different forms. So, businesses do not just have to ensure proper data management, they have to set up such a security infrastructure that ensures robust data protection and at the same time provide uninterrupted access to it. This is where our current legacy systems fail and next-generation data protection evolves. This blog is going to present a comprehensive overview of all the basic information surrounding next-generation data protection.
What is Next-Generation Data Protection?
There is no one common definition to define next-generation data protection. Different organizations have different viewpoints about next-generation data protection. Some links it to rapid data access and enhanced data management, while others link it to advanced data protection measure. But if we talk about next-generation data protection from a broader perspective, it is an advanced way of data protection that transforms the traditional backup and recovery process and provides rapid access to data.
Why Next-Generation Data Protection?
This technologically advanced era has increased the expectation level of customers and triggered businesses to present out-of-the-box services that are mostly data-driven. Such evolvement of businesses digitally has made them more data-centric than ever before. They are now collecting an unprecedented amount of data that includes plenty of sensitive data sets. Besides that, the growing cyber-attacks, possibilities of data loss, and inefficient data backup measures, all have triggered the need for next-generation data protection.
Following are some of the reasons why businesses are actively considering next-generation data protection:
- Improving Legacy Storage Solutions
The traditional approach of backup and restore involves transferring massive data volumes from one place to another. But it takes too much time, which impacts business operations and efficiency of services. The present competitive era demands businesses to have enhanced ways to backup data that do not affect business operations and protect critical data.
Next-generation data protection addresses this concern by transforming the traditional backup and data recovery process. There are data protection solutions available today that can capture data from storage mediums at discrete intervals, such as hourly, daily, weekly, etc. Such solutions automatically perform incremental data backups in the background without causing any kind of disruption. This way, data gets protected, while business operations and services operate disruption-free.
- Rapid Access of Data
As business operations centre around data today, it means there is a need for rapid access to data, quick and frequent backup process, and instant process to restore data. In addition, employees’ productivity can be enhanced if they are given rapid and continuous access to data.
Next-generation data protection is an approach to have better data protection with rapid access to data. Cloud services are an excellent example here. Businesses are eagerly shifting towards cloud-based computing and backups because it provides anywhere and anytime data accessibility. Besides rapid access to data, cloud services also ensure robust data protection by encrypting data before storing it at their remote services. In addition, cloud data storage is based on monthly or annual subscriptions depending on the storage space a company needs. Therefore, businesses can have unlimited storage at a cost-friendly rate compared to what it costs to have on-premises data storage.
- Security Needs
One thing the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us is that we cannot live without data. Employees are forced to work from home, which means they need an uninterrupted supply of business data at their remote location. It seems easy with the internet, but remote networks are not secure compared to workplace networks. So, when employees are accessing business-sensitive data remotely, then how do they ensure protection from possible cyber-attacks. The year 2020 has already been the worst in terms of the number of cyber-attacks businesses encountered. Therefore, the need for efficient security data protection is growing aggressively.
Next generation data protection not just provides more robust data backup measures, but it helps to set better data monitoring. For example, businesses can deploy proper data access management and data analytics systems that can help them keep a close eye on who is getting access to data, what data is being assets, etc.
- Digital Transformation
One business transformation that every business is doing or planning to do is “digital transformation”. Businesses are improving their business models to have efficient business processes, customer experiences, and overall work culture to address the changing market requirements. Next-generation data protection is an essential part of digital transformation, as it let businesses consider new and advanced ways to ensure disaster recovery measures and effective business continuity plans.
- Regulatory Demands
Not only businesses are concerned about data protection, customers’ awareness of data protection and privacy is also rising. In fact, governments are also introducing more strict regulations to ensure data protection and privacy, such as General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Customers are preferring those businesses that are more transparent about what data is being collected and how it is being secured and used. In all such situations, businesses cannot just rely on traditional data protection measures to have long term growth. Next-generation data protection empowers businesses to adopt up-to-date protection measures that are oriented according to present regulatory needs and also meet the expectation of customers.
Wrapping Up
The growing reliance on digital data has urged businesses to take more robust measures towards data protection. Data backups are considered the backbone of businesses today. The sustainability of any business depends on how much it is prepared to address any major data calamity. Next-generation data protection cuts off the traditional, less effective data protection measures and empowers businesses to take advantage of the latest technological advancements for better data protection. If a business cannot ensure next-generation data protection on its own, there are many services that can facilitate in implementing top-notch next-generation data protection.
How Next-Generation Data Protection is Reshaping Data Protection for Businesses
