Among the worst feelings for today’s users is the horrible sensation of losing valuable information with no possibility of ever recovering it. Particularly in the digital age we live in today, this is an unfortunately increasingly common situation.
Around 2011, legend has it that a visionary Reddit user named Ismail Jadun, who at the time was a biology student at Youngstown State, while reading comments on the social network about the need for data backup, realized how important this was not only for tech experts but for everyone.
Taking that into account and taking advantage of the fact that at that time in the United States the celebration of April Fools’ Day was just around the corner on April 1st, Ismail humorously decided to declare March 31st (one day before April Fools) as World Backup Day as a funny but very true warning: “Don’t be a fool and back up your data.”
The origin story of World Backup Day is not only interesting, but it also reflects an undeniable reality: people are storing more and more valuable information that we want to preserve and safeguard. Unfortunately, the necessary measures are not always taken until it’s too late.
According to figures from the official World Backup Day website:
- 30% of people have never made a backup
- 113 mobile phones are lost or stolen every minute
- 1 in 10 computers is infected with a virus every month
In all these scenarios, or even unforeseen accidents like spilling water or coffee on your computer, our valuable data such as photos or videos of great sentimental value, work or school documents, as well as personal information, are at risk of being lost forever if not backed up.
That’s why this March 31st, Kingston Technology, the leading company in memory and storage solutions, gives us 4 basic but essential tips to start practicing the habit of data backup:
1.- Decide which data you want to back up: When deciding what to back up, the first things that come to mind are work or personal files. These can be photos, videos, and documents that, if damaged, would be irreplaceable. You also have the option to back up applications, programs, and system settings you’d like to keep a version of.
2.- Planning: If you want to always have the most up-to-date versions of your files, then planning is essential. The pattern of your plan will largely depend on the content you want to back up. If it’s personal files, a less frequent backup plan is appropriate due to the small volume of data created each month. On the other hand, backing up work data would require more frequent updates.
3.- Don’t have a backup only in the cloud: While the cloud is possibly one of the easiest methods for backing up data, cloud companies are exposed to hacking and, as we have often seen, tend to change the terms, conditions, and contracts of their accounts, which can put your files at risk. On the other hand, a monthly subscription could be more expensive than if the user instead purchased an external storage device.
4.- The 3-2-1 backup rule: This rule is based on the theory of having three backup copies of files: two on different devices (which can be the cloud or external storage), and a third in a safe place, such as a safe deposit box or another location.
In addition to these basic tips, Kingston has a detailed guide with additional advice to become a backup expert, which can be consulted at the following link.
Additionally, Kingston has a wide portfolio of storage products that make the task of backing up much easier. From external SSDs like the XS1000 and XS2000, which feature high data transfer speeds and large storage capacities of 1, 2, and even 4TB, to USBs and SSDs with hardware encryption like those in the Kingston Ironkey range that protect your personal data with passwords and military-grade technology.
This March 31st, Kingston Technology invites all users to join the World Backup Day movement and back up their personal data against any type of incident.
