Always REMEMBER to BACKUP your important data! "Data that only exists in one place is data you don't care about"

It's really simple: Data that only exists in one place is data that you don't care about. What I mean is that if you only keep your data in one location, it must not be very important. If you want to preserve critical data or irreplaceable files (such as photos) you need backups and must keep them in multiple (and safe) locations, including the cloud. Here are some steps to follow to be sure you are always safe and secure:

Make regular backups of your entire PC (not just data) to an external hard drive using imaging software. Make a habit of securely erasing your data. Deleting or sending to the recycle bin is not enough. Securely wipe old hard drives, especially before donating or recycling. Encrypt all sensitive data to protect your privacy against hackers and thieves. Sync your files and folders to various locations such as external hard drive or other PCs. Use and online backup service, especially for irreplaceable files such as photos or videos. Safeguard login credentials (username, password, security tokens).

Data Backup – Imaging Backing up data using imaging software is powerful protection. Laplink DiskImage™ makes this process easy, allowing you to restore your backup in the event that your PC crashes or you unexpectedly lose your data. DiskImage creates a perfect copy of your entire PC, including your operating system. So even if your PC crashes you will be able to restore your entire PC without skipping a beat. Learn more about DiskImage here. When restoring an old image to a new PC or across different versions of Windows, I suggest PCmover® Image Assistant™. We created it for this specific purpose – to bridge the gap that exists in current imaging software products. Previously, it wasn't possible to restore images of PCs with an older operating system to a PC with a newer operating system because the image restoration process would restore everything onto the new PC, including overwriting the new OS. So now, if your old XP or Vista machine crashes and you buy a new Windows 7 PC, you can restore the contents of the old image onto the new Windows 7 PC without overwriting anything. And if you create images of your Windows 7 PC today, you will be able to restore to Windows 8 in the future! Learn more about PCmover Image Assistant here. Data Security – Encryption Encryption may seem difficult or complicated, reserved for the government to protect secrets. However, with the increase of hacker attacks and identity theft, it is crucial to encrypt your sensitive data. Many companies now require their employees encrypt all files saved to a local PC (especially laptops) to ensure confidentiality of company information. We recently released PC Lock™ which takes the fear and confusion out of data encryption and makes it easy and pain-free. PC Lock runs in the background and encrypts your data on the fly without using up precious PC resources. By utilizing its unique Web Management Console you can also set preferences like which file types to encrypt, how many password failed attempts before blocking access and when to deny access to files without cloud authorization. You can also manage your passwords and report a stolen or lost PC from any web enabled device, including smartphones. PC Lock is one of the most secure and user-friendly encryption products available. Learn more about PC Lock here. Data Security – Erasing Most of us erase files by simply moving them into the "Recycle Bin" not realizing those files are just a few clicks away from being recovered, leaving your personal and sensitive information free for the taking. If you use Laplink SafeErase™ to delete your data, you can be sure your data is always securely erased. And when the time comes to buy a new PC, use SafeErase to safely and securely wipe all of your data from the old PC before you recycle or donate it. Learn more about Laplink SafeErase here. Data Replication – Synchronization Synchronization isn't often thought of as a data backup and security tactic but if applied correctly that's exactly what it is. By using PCsync® you can synchronize all of your files and folders to separate devices to ensure that your data is always accessible and not kept in just one place. You can even sync your PC and Mac. PCsync uses Laplink patented SpeedSync® and SmartXchange® technologies to make syncs and transfers as fast as possible. These advanced technologies only sync the changed bits of the files, not the entire file. This makes the file transfers and synchronization extremely quick and will not keep you waiting for the transfer to finish. Learn more about PCsync here.

Credits:

A Letter From Laplink CEO - Cloud Problems and Solutions