Cloud Backup for Education
As Education Data Migrate to the Cloud, Institutions Should Turn to SaaS Backup Services
Over the last several years, educational institutions, from small schools to large universities and districts, have adopted cloud services to help meet their IT needs. While 2020 saw record enrollment in online learning, the COVID pandemic catapulted it up an additional 92% by the fall of that year. As a result, education has undergone a monumental shift in just over two and a half years.
Online resources have become central to every school’s success. SaaS programs like M365 and Google Workspace are a boon for students and administrations alike, allowing quick access and collaboration across all levels. However, cloud data is not always 100% secure, and resource-strapped schools are in a position where they need to shore up their data security.
Why are cloud services used?
The adaptable way to lower costs and bring students together
Like businesses and other public or private organizations, schools enjoy many benefits from cloud services. Most notable, perhaps, is the unrivaled scalability of the cloud. Whether a school or district needs to expand or contract its services, the virtual infrastructure can grow or shrink with much less cost than a physical one. Without the need to purchase new equipment and hire new staff, cloud technology will continue to adapt to the needs of educational institutions of every size.
Similarly, the costs of staffing and maintenance associated with SaaS models for schools are much lower than with in-house facilities. Low prices are critical in public schools, where budgetary constraints are often severe. Cloud services allow public districts to keep IT infrastructure and human resources at a minimum and focus on teaching students.
Cloud applications offer easier access to resources through its increased agility and collaborative tools. After all, the students are the bottom line in every school, and cloud technology would have no place in education if it didn’t facilitate learning. Fortunately, the COVID pandemic illustrated for everyone how effective SaaS can be at keeping students connected. Now, entire classes can collaborate in a complete learning experience, even from different continents.
Moving Data Online So Quickly Raises Security Concerns
As schools have adopted cloud services to enjoy the benefits they offer, the amount of education data online has grown exponentially. All sorts of student data have migrated, from enrollment to grades to financial records. Moreover, teachers are now storing lesson plans, assessments, and projects on the cloud, along with their own personal information. Yet, for all the convenience, managing the sheer volume of data stored on the cloud is becoming more challenging.
School administrations put everyone’s information at risk without proper data management and backup policies. Not only would a loss be inconvenient, leading to unplanned downtime and an arduous recovery process, but it could be financially catastrophic in the case of a ransomware attack. Unfortunately, schools, especially cash-strapped public institutions, often cannot afford the cost of a data security breach.
SaaS Data Backup Reduces the Impact of Hackers and Human Error
Hackers often pose as employees of cloud service providers and dupe school staff into revealing their login credentials. This can lead to a ransom attack or straightforward deletion of all the data subject to the employee’s login. There have already been many cases this year of high schools crippled by ransom attacks. In one case, an attack crippled a college’s admissions procedures so severely that the school financially imploded, closing its doors permanently in May.
In addition, simple human error is responsible for accidentally deleting a tremendous amount of data in most large organizations. While professional development and conscientious staff are always important, it is impossible to eliminate mistakes altogether.
Of course, even the cloud service providers are not immune to basic human errors or hacking, and there is no guarantee that they always have a backup. One survey has shown that over 60% of businesses have had SaaS misconfigurations that led to data loss. According to employees, the most common reason for misconfiguration was that too many people had access to the cloud settings, a perennial problem in large organizations like school districts or university administrations. As cloud services scale up, the need for data protection increases.
The easiest and most affordable way for schools to ensure their cloud data is safe is to use a cloud-to-cloud (C2C) backup service. This model transfers data from a SaaS platform (like M365 or Google Workspace) and backs it up securely at a private facility. The chief convenience of a C2C backup is that the school does not need to download all its data from various platforms and then re-upload it to a new one. Instead, they can send their data directly to the C2C backup provider — no need to pay for added staff or bandwidth.
As a result, having accurate and secure backups of all their SaaS data prevents schools from the costly and drawn-out recovery efforts of data loss or theft.
C2 Backup for Business Offers Robust Protection to Educational Institutions of All Sizes
Synology C2 Backup for Business is the best way for schools to protect their cloud service data. Using private keys to ensure only the school or district has data access, the C2 Backup protocol employs client-side AES-256 encryption before it uploads any school data to its high-durability servers. Moreover, Synology’s services can scale with any educational institution, whether a single building, university campus, or urban school district.
Finally, C2 Backup has a competitive pricing structure — they understand that many school administrations operate on a shoestring budget. Andrew, the Executive Director of Information Systems/CIO of the East Aurora School District, says,
“Synology C2 provided the best backup solution for our situation. Compared to other systems that are complex and expensive, C2 occupies a sweet spot, providing great technology at a great price point.”
Some institutions are eligible to participate in the C2 Education Program. Specifically designed to help schools manage and protect their data, the Program offers exclusive perks to members. Offerings include ultra-fast authentication, secure file sharing, and a free-use tier. The Synology C2 Education Program brings complete data protection for schools at a low cost — freeing up resources to focus on what matters: education.
