The State of Data Protection

It is no secret that data growth is rampant. Specifically, customers are grappling with exponentially growing petabytes of unstructured content and backup/copy data. What’s more, this data is being created by a variety of applications using a number of different access methods, including non-traditional data sources such as social media and IoT sensors. This data resides on-premises and in the cloud, and it must be accessed by distributed workforces.

Backup copies in particular have become critical to the business; there are a growing number of data privacy regulations that must be complied with, and a range of imminent threat vectors that must be addressed. Previously, hardware failures, especially those resulting from natural disasters like earthquakes, were arguably the biggest threat vector for data loss. However, ransomware and other cyberattacks and instances of data tampering – including from malicious insiders – continue to grow, costing organizations millions. In fact, in Evaluator Group’s Ransomware Pulse Survey 2021, more than half of respondents indicated having spent money on data protection over the last 12 months due to the rise in ransomware. At the same time, 87% indicated that they plan to spend, or have budgeted to spend, to acquire technologies for ransomware protection and prevention over the next 12 months. In addition, companies still must protect against issues such as device failure and accidental data deletion resulting from human error.

Against this backdrop, all data must be protected, and it must be protected in a way that is cost-efficient so as not to break the bank. This is not an easy feat considering the sprawling and heterogeneous nature of today’s production and backup IT environments.

Download now to continue reading the free Technical Insight report.