Start the New Year with Peace of Mind

As businesses wrap up Q4, priorities often center on financial reporting, performance reviews, and strategic planning. But one critical task that often slips through the cracks, backing up your cloud data, can determine how smoothly you start the new year.

Cloud solutions like Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, and Salesforce make daily operations seamless. Yet, many organizations still assume “cloud storage” equals “cloud protection.” Unfortunately, it doesn’t matter. The responsibility for protecting, retaining, and restoring data ultimately rests with you, not the platform provider.

Cloud Convenience, Hidden Risk

Even the best cloud platforms aren’t immune to data loss. Here’s what many IT leaders overlook:

  • Human error is the top culprit. Over 70% of cloud data losses are caused by accidental deletion or overwriting files.
  • Ransomware reaches the cloud. Malware that encrypts your local files can also sync with your cloud drives, spreading the infection.
  • Retention policies are limited. After 30–90 days, deleted data may be unrecoverable — leaving compliance and audit trails at risk.
  • Third-party integrations can misfire. A single bad sync or update can corrupt data across multiple systems.

Without proper backup protocols, a small oversight today could lead to a major data gap tomorrow.

The Year-End Backup Checklist

Treat your data like your business depends on it, because it does. Use this year-end checklist to secure your digital foundation:

  1. Review your backup coverage. Ensure all your SaaS applications, file shares, and databases are included in your policy.
  2. Automate retention schedules. Manual backups are inconsistent, automate wherever possible.
  3. Test recovery regularly. A backup is only as good as its ability to restore data fast.
  4. Store copies separately. Keep one backup version offsite or in a separate cloud region.
  5. Document and audit. Record backup cycles and test results for compliance reporting.

A verified backup routine isn’t just an IT task; it’s a business resilience measure.

ISM Insight

Data loss incidents often spike after the holidays; when systems reboot, storage is purged, and teams rush to clean up old projects. Taking time now to validate your cloud backups prevents unnecessary downtime and costly recovery efforts in Q1.

Before you sign off for the holidays, schedule a cloud data audit and confirm your backups are up to date.
Your future self (and your IT department) will thank you.

I️SM can help you benchmark your data protection readiness and optimize your cloud resilience strategy for 2026. Contact us today to schedule your Year-End Data Protection Assessment.