Security

Why Agencies Need Backup as a Service for Data Protection

With BaaS, a third party shoulders the burden of managing backups that agencies can scale and pay for as needed.

Dave Russell is vice president of enterprise strategy at Veeam Software.

In 2023, the admonition to back up your data might seem as obvious as being told to lock your door or fasten your seatbelt. But a recent Veeam study found an astonishing 34 percent of IT leaders felt their cloud-hosted files were “durable” and didn't need to be backed up.

While the cloud is well designed and resilient, it’s a fact that cloud providers usually shift the burden of data backups to customers that use their services. This means your agency might be out of luck if it suffers a cyberattack or accidental data deletion, even if it contracts with Amazon Web Services or Microsoft.

Data backups can be complicated, but they’re essential for agencies as they shift more data and applications to the cloud. IT leaders can either handle the tooling and manage the processes themselves or bring in a third party to relieve the burden.

The latter option is called Backup as a Service. Rather than keeping data and apps on-premises, BaaS providers protect and secure them in encrypted codes in the cloud. While an agency that uses BaaS can still access its backed-up data, it hands over all management and maintenance to the provider.

Learn how agencies can adhere to GSA standards and protect email backups.

Explore how to choose the right backup when your agency functions in multiple environments.

Agencies that choose BaaS over do-it-yourself alternatives expect to:

gain access to experts by offloading the setup, maintenance, monitoring and updating of the storage and software
get started quickly and avoid capital expenditure (CAPEX) purchasing and complex setup processes by using the as-a-service model
accelerate cloud adoption by taking a cloud-first approach to storage decisions
establish a secondary location for backups to ensure that data is recoverable and archived for compliance
keep data secure from ransomware and insider attacks by keeping an air-gapped copy away from primary storage

Here’s a closer look at how BaaS can benefit agencies.

BaaS Saves Time and Money en Route to the Cloud

Hand off the heavy lifting: Like any other outsourced offering, BaaS removes a set of tasks that IT leaders may not want to perform. They’d prefer not to have to manage all the daily backups and restoration — they just want the backups to work.

Engaging with a third party eliminates the need to save, label and track resources daily. In addition to providing productivity gains, BaaS initiatives ensure that data is protected and backup copies are secured and available in the cloud.

This lets agencies quickly resume operations following a disruption. BaaS simplifies the data protection process so agencies can focus their talent, budget and resources on objectives that drive business growth.

Avoid CAPEX: Setting up an internal backup capability can be time-consuming and expensive. Rather than making large, upfront purchases, BaaS users can spread their costs over time.

Agencies can take advantage of predictable, pay-as-you-go models and dial up resources as they need them. That frees up budget that would normally have to be committed to on-premises infrastructure and frequent hardware upgrades.

Automated backups also lower the ongoing IT costs associated with traditional backup-and-restore methods.

Accelerate cloud adoption: The cloud is a significant driver for the federal government, as it helps transform and modernize operations. A BaaS strategy can help agencies move further toward the cloud.

Setting up a cloud-first strategy for storage decisions, BaaS enables agencies to make decisions faster, shed technical debt, deploy quickly and scale operations over time.

Click the banner below to learn how Backup as a Service boosts data protection.

BaaS Makes Compliance Easy While Protecting Data

Streamline compliance initiatives: Compliance standards such as HIPAA, the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation, Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, and System and Organization Controls 2 require agencies to follow rigorous procedures when it comes to tracking and protecting data.

While having any kind of data backup system will help with compliance, BaaS providers can meet requirements by ensuring data is not only protected but also available to users. Providers can effectively respond to audits by delivering regular documentation and reporting.

By properly implementing the required data and privacy controls, agencies will prove they’re reliable and earn user trust.

Keep data secure: Moving critical data offsite while keeping it secure and backed up is the principal goal of any data protection strategy. BaaS providers invest in the mission-critical security that’s needed to fight today’s increasingly dangerous threats.

Agencies can rest easy knowing encryption will protect data that’s either in transit across the network or at rest. Copies of the data are lodged behind air gaps and kept separate from other data.

BaaS providers also protect against unauthorized access and offer advanced detection to spot ransomware and suspicious file behavior.

Image by Staff Artist