Current News

  • Tape backup strategy still prevails despite 40% admitting to data loss 24 June 2010

    24th June 2010:  Tape backup strategy still prevails despite 40% admitting to data loss, survey reveals.

    A recent survey of 400 Irish organisations reveals that despite concerns about its reliability, organisations continue to use traditional methods, such as tape to backup their sensitive data.

    The IT Force survey, conducted in conjunction with keepITsafe, found that of the data backup methods available, tape remains the most widespread with 65% of respondents indicating this as the preferred method in their organisation.   15% used disk based methods.  Only 7% have switched to online data backup services.  Despite the continued reliance on traditional methods such as tapes, 2 in 5 organisations (39 %) admitted to a significant data loss incident.   

    Joe Molloy, Managed Services Director, IT Force, Kelly Crowley, Assistant Fundraising Officer, Dublin Simon and Eoin Blacklock, Managing Director, keepITsafe.

    Pictured:  Joe Molloy, Managed Services Director, IT Force, Kelly Crowley, Assistant Fundraising Officer, Dublin Simon and Eoin Blacklock, Managing Director, keepITsafe.


    Of those who experienced a data loss incident and had to conduct a restore, 1 in 5 admitted to never getting all the lost data retrieved while 1 in 3 claimed it took more than a day to get all or
    some of the data back.  

    In contrast to the widespread occurrence of data loss, the principle of backing up data is still heavily accepted amongst Irish organisations.   100% of respondents confirmed they back up their data.   96% back up data on a daily basis and 74% have a documented disaster recovery plan in the office. The acceptance of the backing up principle was further highlighted with 40% of organisations spending over € 1,000 per annum on backup services.

    Despite the acceptance of backing up data, the data management arrangements within organisations differ widely.   60% of organisations have data leaving their office in some format on a regular basis.  67% of respondents mentioned that where tapes are used, they are generally kept onsite at all times.  Where tapes are employed only 28% believe them to be encrypted.

    Meanwhile, 28% of respondents wait for two years before replacing a back up tape, while 35% did not know how often tapes where replaced.
    When there is a data breech, the survey revealed that it may be hard to pinpoint those responsible.  32% of respondents claimed responsibility is mixed between an IT services provider and an internal employee.   70.4% said that backing up was the responsibility of more than one internal employee. A quarter of all organisations do not have a formal, documented disaster recovery plan and 19% confessed to not knowing what their legal obligations relating to data protection and management where. 

    “The most significant finding was that while backing up is an accepted principle amongst Irish organisations, traditional methods such as tapes remain popular despite the fact that all too often they simply don’t work”, explains Joe Molloy, Managed Services Director with IT Force.  Molloy believes Irish organisations need to embrace new technologies such as online backup services that are “without question more effective in terms of reliability and costs”. 

    For each survey participant, a contribution was made to the Dublin Simon Community.   

  • Rethink to reduce your bills 06 June 2010

    6th June 2010: Joe Molloy talks to Ian Campbell of the Sunday Business Post about the business case for thin-client computing, server and desktop virtualisation.

    Thin client computing has been around for a decade, but its ability to shave some money of electricity bills is an increasingly appealing part of its feature set.  Read the full story by Ian Campbell in the Sunday Business Post.

  • Interim staff boost IT skills 28 March 2010

    28th March 2010:  Joe O'Reilly talks to Caroline Allen of the Sunday Business Post about how companies are turning to external providers to source interim IT skills.  

    In the wake of recent redundancies, companies are turning to external providers for IT skills. Caroline Allen reports. 

    Read the full story on page 1 and page 5 of the Annual Sunday Business Post Managed Services Supplement. 

  • Virtual office: going the extra mile in lean times 31 January 2010

    31st January 2010:  Joe Molloy talks to Connie O'Toole of the Sunday Business Post about mobile working and the expansion of the "virtual office" paradigm

    More and more people will work flexibly in the future as work patterns change and people try to achieve abetter worklife balance. This is according to Joe Molloy, managed services director, IT Force.

    Read the full story in Computers in Business from the Sunday Business Post