Lessons Learned from Hurricane Irma and Harvey

Is your business hurricane-ready?

Hurricanes Irma and Harvey prompted a lot of preparations, for both families and businesses. Now that the worst has passed, what lessons have we learned? The UDT team shares their lessons from the latest storm to impact Florida.

Have an internal communications plan

It’s essential for the entire team to stay on the same page. Apart from company-wide messaging, consider holding a status call with more information for managers to disseminate to their teams. Consider alternate means of communication to your teams in the event all conventional methods (e-mail, text messages, cellular service, etc.) are not readily available. Social media could also be used to inform clients, the general public, and employees alike of critical updates regarding office closings.

Backup, backup, backup

This goes for everything: backup your systems, files and important documents. Create digital versions of paper documents that you need to hold onto. Apart from backing up and regularly testing the restoration of your backups, consider having a contingency plan in the event one of your locations or main office does not have power or internet connectivity to resume normal business. Consider looking into co-working spaces as an alternate means to continue your day-to-day activities until your office has all utility and telecommunication services restored.

Identify your Alpha team

Before the team disperses to attend to their personal responsibilities, identify the following:

Who will be the points of contact?
Who can employees count on and who can clients go to?
Will you be outsourcing certain tasks to other offices?

We here at UDT initiated our DR Plan and moved our Help Desk, NOC, and SOC Operations to our Nashville office while the Florida offices were closed.

Find your backup data recovery centers

After the backups are done, verify where the recovery centers are located. If the centers are also on the storm trajectory, contact the company to ensure your data is secure.

Go wireless with the cloud

Give yourself one less thing to worry about by switching all backups over to the cloud. There are specific ways to get started with the cloud, but the most pertinent would be Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS). This service saves critical response time by restoring your on-premise data in just hours with a pre-built, fully configured virtual environment, quickly enabling your servers to run within our cloud environment for up to two weeks or beyond.

Have a disaster recovery plan – and test it before the storm hits

This disaster recovery plan should be easy to understand by all employees, and should be reevaluated periodically. Our Chief Information Officer, Charles Grau, suggested the Disaster Recovery Template as a starting point for businesses. “Not only should you test before a threat is imminent, but test on a semiannual basis,” added Grau.

Is your business hurricane-ready? Contact us today to discuss personalized plans for your business, including local and offsite backup solutions.

Accomplish More With UDT

Get your custom solution in cybersecurity, lifecycle management, digital transformation and managed IT services. Connect with our team today.

More to explore

Crafting a Futureproof 1:1 Device Strategy for School Districts

In the evolving landscape of Education Technology, crafting a futureproof 1:1 device strategy is crucial. This strategy should link every student, teacher, and administrator experience with specific device specifications. The integration of educational apps into the curriculum can significantly enhance the learning environment. These apps, tailored to the needs of students, can provide interactive content, fostering a dynamic learning experience.

Optimizing Your K12 Tech Investments: Funding 1:1 Device Programs

This blog will guide school districts grappling with the financial and resource demands of implementing a successful 1:1 device program amid ongoing challenges of budget constraints and competing priorities. Our guided workbook, created in partnership with Intel, provides further support with personalized roadmap on “Pathways to Innovation: Building a Sustainable Digital Learning Environment”.

K12 Cybersecurity: How to Secure 1:1 Devices in Your School District

This blog post delves into the importance of security, cybersecurity, and data privacy in school districts implementing 1:1 device initiatives. It offers basic steps for evaluating, planning, and executing a security strategy. Our guided workbook, created in partnership with Intel, provides a personalized roadmap on “Pathways to Innovation: Building a Sustainable Digital Learning Environment”.

Lost & Stolen Devices are a Serious Data Security Threat—Here’s Why

Since the pandemic, remote and hybrid work has become the norm. While mobile devices and remote workstations have empowered great flexibility, it has also led to an increase in data security problems due to lost, misplaced, or stolen devices. Find out how remote and hybrid setups are contributing to this problem and how to protect yourself and your organization.

Ransomware Gangs Adding Pressure with ‘Swatting’ Attacks—Here’s What You Need to Know

Ransomware gangs are implementing new extortion tactics to encourage victims to pay up. Swatting is becoming an increasingly popular tactic. It involves calling law enforcement to falsely report a serious, in-progress crime triggering an extreme response such as an armed raid from the SWAT team. Explore how cybercriminals are using this tactic and what you can do to prevent it from happening to you.

Smishing Attacks are on the Rise—Here’s How To Keep Your Data Safe

Smishing attacks are on the rise, posing a significant threat to data security. Originating from a blend of SMS and Phishing, these attacks have seen a drastic increase since 2020. The widespread use of smishing attacks has persisted, with a lack of awareness being a major issue. Many view these as simple spam messages, unaware of the danger they pose. This blog aims to raise awareness about smishing and provide actionable insights to protect yourself and your organization.