Qualities to Look for in Disaster Recovery Service Providers
Commonly referred to as DRaaS, “Disaster Recovery as a Service” is a cloud computing model that lets an organization replicate its mission critical data to the cloud to help recover in the event that a disruption like a ransomware attack takes place. Should your organization fall victim to this or another type of cyber event, Disaster Recovery as a Service allows your company to recover and resume normal operations not in days or hours, but in minutes.
It’s critical to understand that no two DRaaS providers are created equally. To find a company worth partnering with, you need to be prepared to look beyond the technology being offered to fully understand the benefits you gain access to. This process isn’t difficult, but it will require you to keep a number of important things in mind.
Finding the Right Disaster Recovery Partner: Your Overview
One of the most important qualities to look for in a disaster recovery service partner is the experience and expertise they bring to the table. This is true not only in terms of compliance with governing bodies like HIPAA, but also local and state regulations as well.
Along the same lines, any partner that you choose to work with needs to be willing to sign the highest level of Business Associate Agreement (BAA)—something that includes the latest HIPAA omnibus rule as well.
Tier IV Data Centers
In a larger sense, your disaster recovery partner needs to offer access to a Tier IV data center environment—one that is SOC II and III certified, along with SSAE 16-certified as well. HIPAA and PCI compliance are also essential to that end. Not only does it again make sure that all critical data is stored in a way that takes into consideration compliance-related matters like HIPAA, but it also offers a level of protection that guarantees your data is being managed by a team of professionals at all times.
Service Level Agreements
When looking for a disaster recovery partner, any company that you choose to work with should also have service level agreements (SLA) in place, meaning that they make guarantees as to exactly what you can expect if something goes wrong. Your partner should provide set response time levels depending on your organization’s unique risk appetite, for example. These include response times in the event of “emergency” situations, “urgent” situations, “standard” situations and more.
This is all critical, as it gives you an idea of what to expect should something go wrong so you can make adequate preparations and be proactive about what your response will be.
Recovery Time Objectives / Recovery Point Objectives
Any partner worth doing business with will also provide RTO and RPO targets that meet your organization’s risk assessment guidelines. Every organization’s risk profile—and risk tolerance—will naturally be a bit different from the next. Therefore, your partner needs to be willing to work with you to come up with a plan that makes the most sense given your goals. They shouldn’t try to force you into a “one size fits all” approach to security that doesn’t exist.
Flexible Service
Beyond that, your disaster recovery service partner should be willing to quickly provision additional service as necessary, particularly as your own needs continue to grow and evolve. They should offer a proof-of-concept so your organization can test the solution you’re being offered before implementing it, and they should be willing to make recommendations to maximize the return on your current investment whenever possible.
Encryption Abilities
But more than anything, they should be able to demonstrate an ability to encrypt all data stored within the cloud in a way that cannot be penetrated by outside attackers. Full disk encryption, volume and virtual disk encryption, file/folder encryption, all of this should be available to you because all of it is essential for keeping organizations protected in the modern era.
Again, keep in mind that these are the bare minimum qualities that a disaster recovery service provider needs to be able to offer to organizations such as yours. If you find one who checks all of these boxes, you’ll have identified more than just another solutions company. You’ll have found a true IT partner in every sense of the term—which ultimately sets your business up for growth.
If disaster recovery is on your mind, let’s discuss. Comport has provided guidance on technology solutions for more than 30 years and has audited countless IT environments for optimization. Get started with upgrading your disaster recovery strategy by contacting us today or requesting a disaster recovery readiness assessment for an analysis of your current environment and strategies to improve.
