Are You Prepared for Hurricane Season?

but for Florida businesses,like in Tampa, Orlando, and Miami areas. it’s also a wake-up call for IT preparedness and cybersecurity. Natural disasters like hurricanes can disrupt operations, compromise sensitive data and damage vital infrastructure. In fact, 40% of businesses never reopen following a disaster.

In such events, having a robust disaster recovery plan (DRP) and IT emergency preparedness checklist is essential to minimize downtime and protect your business, no matter how severe the weather.

Read: The 6 Types of Disaster Recovery Plan Solutions

The IT Threats During Hurricane Season

Although hurricanes are primarily known for their devastating physical impact, they also bring significant risks to your IT infrastructure and cybersecurity. The potential risks include:

• Data loss: Flooding, wind damage and power outages or surges can destroy on-site servers and data centers, making it impossible to recover critical data without backups.
• Downtime: Prolonged network outages can halt operations, resulting in lost revenue, damaged reputation and missed business opportunities. The average cost of downtime is between $5,600 and $9,000 per minute.
• Cybersecurity vulnerabilities: Power outages and system disruptions can open the door to cyber criminals. Hackers often exploit these chaotic situations to breach systems that are momentarily offline, unmonitored or overwhelmed. Employers often see a rise in phishing, ransomware or malware attacks during this time.
• Communication breakdown: When traditional communication channels go down, maintaining business continuity becomes more difficult, especially for remote workers.

The Importance of a Disaster Recovery Plan

A disaster recovery plan (DRP) is not only about getting back online after a storm; it’s about having a solid plan in place to ensure your data, applications and systems can be restored quickly and efficiently while minimizing any potential damages. This plan is your shield against the storm, outlining procedures for backing up data, restoring systems and maintaining operations during and after a disaster.

A well-constructed DRP should include:

• Data backups: Regular backups of all critical data should be stored on-site, offsite and in the cloud, ensuring that even if physical servers are damaged, your information remains intact.
• Cloud solutions: Moving infrastructure and applications to the cloud can enhance resilience, as cloud providers have their own robust disaster recovery protocols, ensuring your services remain available, even during a natural disaster. Plus, organizations can recover quickly with cloud solutions.
• Cybersecurity measures: DRP must include strong cybersecurity measures, like multi-factor authentication (MFA), firewalls, strong passwords and software patches. Utilize real-time monitoring and threat detection to identify and mitigate potential threats during and after a hurricane.
• Redundant systems: Multiple data centers in different geographical locations can help protect against widespread outages and guarantee business continuity.
• Communication protocols: Establish clear communication channels for employees, customers and partners. Everyone should also know their roles and responsibilities in case of a disaster.
• Regular testing: It’s not enough to have a plan in place – regularly testing and updating your DRP ensures they work when they need them the most. Testing should include real-world simulations to help identify gaps and vulnerabilities, and you should update the DRP with any new technologies or threats.

Read: Pros and Cons of Different Data Backup Solutions

IT Emergency Preparedness Checklist

To ensure your organization is ready for hurricane season, take some proactive steps and follow this comprehensive checklist:

• Backup your critical data: Make sure all your important files, photos and documents are regularly backed up to the cloud, an external hard drive and a secure offsite location.
• Charge it up: Fully charge all your electronic devices, including phones, laptops and tablets, in case of a power outage.
• Device protection: Protect your valuable electronics from power surges by plugging them into surge protectors. Invest in backup generators and uninterruptible power supplies.
• Conduct a risk assessment: Evaluate your IT infrastructure for potential vulnerabilities with a cybersecurity risk assessment. From there, prioritize which vulnerabilities need the fastest patching.
• Keep updated: Stay connected with the latest storm updates and emergency alerts by following local news channels and downloading reliable weather apps.
• Secure your equipment: If you have any sensitive equipment, like servers or routers, safely store it in waterproof containers or elevate it at least four feet to avoid water damage.
• Create an emergency contact list: Save essential phone numbers and email addresses of your IT support team, internet service provider and any other crucial contacts.
• Have a backup internet plan: In case of an internet outage, consider having a backup plan, such as a mobile hotspot or a secondary internet service provider.
• Incident response plan: Develop a detailed incident response plan (IRP) for responding to IT emergencies and disasters.
• Train employees: Train staff to recognize and avoid cyber attacks, and keep them updated on cybersecurity best practices.

Keep Your Business Safe with Thriveon

Preparation is critical to minimizing disruption and protecting your valuable assets. By proactively addressing these considerations, you can increase your company’s resilience to hurricanes and other natural disasters. However, we understand that implementing these cybersecurity protocols can be time-consuming and difficult if you don’t know where to start. That’s why partnering with Thriveon, an award-winning managed service provider, is the smart move.

We have over 20 years of experience helping our clients in Florida prepare for hurricanes and other natural disasters. Our fractional chief information officers (CIOs) help them build robust DRPs and IRPs so they can handle events with ease.

Want to protect your business? Schedule a meeting with us now.