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2-2-1-1 Understand what the term 'backup' means, and why a regular
backup routine is important.
Backup refers to making copies of your data for recovery in case of loss. There are
many ways in which data could be lost. Accidental deleting, corrupt hardware, natural
hazards such as fire and water damage, virus attacks, theft, loss, and many more.
Accidentally deleting files typically places the files in the recycle bin, which can be
recovered easily enough, but if not, recovery can be a time-consuming task with no
guarantee of success. If files have been deleted in a virus attack, there is very little
chance of getting them back. Hard disks do fail from time to time and in the case of
equipment failure, recoveri ng data will require professional assistance and will be
costly.

Data loss is unpredictable, so you should always have an up-to-date backup. The best
way to be sure is to have a regular backup schedule. The more often you back up,
the less data you will lose. A few minutes spent once a week is much better than
having to rewrite a month’s worth of work reports, or losing your family photos, or
rewriting a whole term’s project report.

Most computers have their own backup programs; Fig. 7 below shows an example of
a Backup Process in Windows 7 that gives you information about backup options.

Fig. 7 BackUp Manager Example

20 Cyber Safety

2-2-1-2 Recognise common backup devices: CD’s, DVD’s, USB
Drives, External Hard Drives, and be aware of different capacities.
The easiest and most feasible way to back up your files is to copy your files
(documents, pictures, photos etc.) to CD, DVD, USB flash drives or an external hard
drive. CDs and DVDs have limited storage capacity but are inexpensive; USB flash
drives are usually small in size and can hold gigabytes of information; external hard
drives are the most expensive option but can be used to backup your enti re hard drive
including programs and operating system due to their larger storage capacity.

Table 1 below illustrates the typical maximum storage capacity of common storage
devices:

Device Maximum Storage Capacity
External hard drive Up to 2TB or more
USB flash drives Commonly up to 128GB
DVD 4.7GB

CD 700MB

Table 1 Storage Capacities of Common Storage Devices

Your backup copies should be kept at a separate location from the originals, in case of
a fire or flood for example. If such a disaster occurs, all of your data could be lost if it is
stored in one place.

2-2-1-3 Understand what cloud-based backup entails.

Cloud computing is the use of computer resources that are delivered as a service over
a network - typically the Internet. The name comes from the common use of a cloud
shaped symbol that is used to simplify complex situations. Users access cloud-based
applications through a web browser or mobile app and the user’s data is stored on
servers at a remote location. Users normally have a limited amount of free storage
space, when that is used up the providers charge a fee. Paid services offer more
storage and often special backup software to automate the process. The benefits of
cloud storage are that it is inexpensive - often free, is readily accessible from a range
of devices, has automated backup and recovery systems, is ideal for collaboration
purposes, is more secure as backups are physically removed from original files, is
invisible – has no physical presence and allows for automatic updates of your files
across all of your devices.

Cyber Safety 21

Some examples of free/paid services are: Just Cloud (www.justcloud.com), Dropbox
(www.dropbox.com), and Google Drive (accessible via your Gmail account) .

Fig. 8 below illustrates Just Cloud’s sign-up service that enables access to your files
from anywhere:

Fig. 8 Cloud-based storage - Just Cloud (http://www.justcloud.com/)
2-2-1-4 Use backup features on your computer, and understand what
it means to restore a backup.
Operating systems have different options for backups; the following exercise takes
you through the steps to complete a backup on a Windows 7 computer: