Hurricane season has begun and as Orlando residents, most of us know what supplies to purchase and how to prepare our homes. However, many don’t give thought to the importance of preparing their technology and digital information for a hurricane or other natural disaster.

Here are the important assets you should consider and how to get them prepared.

Data. Your personal and business data should have backup copies made frequently. Hurricane season shouldn’t be your cue to prepare your data for a disaster. Anything can happen to an office building or home at any time so backups should be made and stored in a secure location.

Consider storing your important and irreplaceable workplace data in network files. The storage hardware for these network files is in a physically secure place that is monitored 24/7. It’s important for the data to be secure from environmental catastrophes and human intruders.

If you’re using a storage device, be sure it has security protections like encryption or biometric authentication. By making copies of data to store in separate places, you’re lowering the risk of physical destruction, but you’re increasing the risk of a data security breach. Whether the data is personal or workplace-related, it’s important to take the proper steps for it to be in a physically secure location, and have the necessary encryption to be technically safe as well.

Devices. Your computers, servers, and other equipment are expensive and important to the efficiency of your business. To get them ready for a hurricane or other potential environmental threat, first move them away from windows and other areas vulnerable to wind, rain, or debris. Your equipment should be placed in a closet or other windowless room, away from any external walls.

Smaller devices can be placed under sturdy desks or other furniture that can withstand falling debris or strong winds. However, electronic devices should never be placed on the floor. Flooding will ruin the devices unless they’re placed in sturdy, waterproof containers. Be sure all electronics are completely unplugged from power sources and consider wrapping them in plastic bags to prevent water damage. After a storm, take caution with devices that were exposed to water. They may need to be cleaned and dried by an expert water restoration service before being used.

Preparedness prevents devastating data loss and productivity downtime and is essential for personal or workplace data and devices. Contact us today so we can help you rest assured you’re technologically prepared for hurricane season.

For information on preparing your technology for hurricane season or IT Support in Orlando, contact Firewall Computer Services at 407-647-3430.