It's important to regularly review your backup policies to ensure they remain effective and aligned with your business needs, especially if you're aiming to meet Cyber Essentials requirements. Backup policies outline how your business copies and protects critical data so you can recover quickly from incidents like cyberattacks, hardware failure, or accidental deletion.
For UK SMEs, a failure in backup processes can lead to costly downtime, loss of customer trust, and even regulatory scrutiny under UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. If your backups are outdated, incomplete, or not securely stored, you risk extended service interruptions and potential data breaches, which can damage your reputation and compliance standing.
Why this matters for UK SMEs
Consider a typical SME with around 50 employees handling customer data and financial records. If their backup policy hasn't been reviewed in over a year, it might not cover new systems or cloud services introduced recently. When a ransomware attack encrypts their files, they discover backups are incomplete or inaccessible because of poor storage practices. This results in days of downtime, lost sales, and a scramble to meet ICO reporting obligations.
A reliable IT partner would help by conducting a thorough review of backup schedules, storage locations, encryption methods, and restoration procedures. They'd ensure backups are tested regularly and that the policy reflects current business operations and Cyber Essentials criteria, including secure configuration and access controls.
Practical checklist for reviewing your backup policies
- Ask your IT provider: How often are backups performed and tested? Are backups stored offsite or in the cloud with encryption?
- Check backup scope: Does the policy cover all critical data, including new applications and mobile devices?
- Verify access controls: Who can access backup data? Is multi-factor authentication (MFA) enabled for these accounts?
- Review retention periods: How long are backups kept? Does this meet your business and compliance needs?
- Test restoration: When was the last successful restore test? Can you recover data within an acceptable timeframe?
- Update documentation: Is the backup policy clearly documented and communicated to relevant staff?
- Align with Cyber Essentials: Does the backup approach support the Cyber Essentials technical controls, such as secure configuration and boundary firewalls?
Regularly reviewing your backup policies—at least annually or when significant changes occur—helps maintain resilience against cyber threats and operational disruptions. It also supports audit readiness by demonstrating control over data protection and recovery processes.
If you're unsure whether your current backup arrangements meet these standards, it's wise to consult a trusted managed IT provider or IT advisor. They can assess your setup, recommend improvements, and help you maintain compliance with Cyber Essentials and other relevant UK security practices.