Backups are crucial, and most people understand their importance. However, in practice, backups are often treated as a “set and forget” task—until disaster strikes, and it turns out those backups are useless. Some are using a DTAP process and have some resilience that way but that is not that common. In this talk I want the audience to critically think about ther current backup and disaster recovery strategies. Using real-world scenarios and anecdotes, I’ll highlight key risks, such as:
- Relying solely on a web host’s backups—what if their data center burns down? (e.g., OVH Cloud fire, UK heatwave)
- Losing access due to missed payments (either you or your client)
- What happens if a solo provider has a medical emergency or passes away?
- Cloud accounts being compromised (e.g., AWS hacks, Google revoking access)
- Ransomware attacks corrupting backup storage
- Hardware failures of external drives
- Critical files disappearing due to platform policies (e.g., Google account deletions)