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Backup files are an essential part of any computer’s survival kit. We all know that losing data is the worst thing that can happen to a computer user and that backing up your data is one of the most important things you should do to protect your sensitive information. Yet everyday computers users lose their files due to hard drive failure, fire, theft, or another disaster.

Computer experts recommend doing at least three backups – two on external storage devices like hard drives and optical disks (CDs, DVDs), and one stored off-site in case your house burns down or gets burgled. Keeping these storage devices safe however is not always easy – many people store them in locked cabinets where they’re well protected from physical threats but still vulnerable to fire and water damage.

When it comes to keeping your backup files safe, there are a few simple things you can do. Here are some proven ways you can protect your important data.

Create Flash Drive Duplicates

Flash drives (or thumb drives) are great for making backups – small, affordable, and very portable. Their drawbacks however include the possibility of losing or breaking them, which may mean that your backup files end up inaccessible or damaged.

One solution is to create flash drive duplicates using industrial flash duplication machines. This way you’ll always have a working copy if something goes wrong with your flash drive. Flash drive duplications can be done in batches so if you need several flash drives you don’t need to wait. To ensure the best flash drive duplication results, it’s important to check the flash drive manufacturer and to use flash drives with large capacities. It will also allow multiple flash drives to be copied at the same time.

Encrypt Your Backup Files before Storing Anywhere

If your backup files are unencrypted, anyone who gets hold of them can easily access your sensitive data. That’s why you should use encryption software on all of your storage devices – it scrambles the data so that only someone with the correct decryption key can read it. There are many good encryption tools available to computer users, so if you have a backup storage device then using encryption is essential.

In addition to encrypting your storage devices, you should also use passwords on them as well as the other computers and programs that access their files. This isn’t always possible with external hard drives but at least try to set a login password so other people can’t just plug it into another computer and start copying your data to network servers or removing it completely.

Choose the Right Safe

Safe is perhaps an understatement when describing computer backup devices. They are heavily protected against physical theft with locks and secret compartments, but they are still susceptible to the heat of a fire or water damage. That’s why it’s so important to keep them in a cool dry location away from any potential sources of ignition. However, if you do this then there is no guarantee that they will be safe in case of disaster.

If you want to ensure your backup storage device stays safe even while under threat of fire, it needs to be made out of the right material. Most safes on the market today use special types of steel that can endure high temperatures for some time without buckling or melting (it also has to be fireproof as well as water-resistant). If you can’t afford a fireproof safe for your backup device, then it’s at least important to keep it away from any heat sources and sources of ignition.

Don’t Forget to Test Your Backups

All the security in the world won’t save your data if you don’t test your backups first. Before storing them off-site for example, make sure that your backup devices work properly by testing their contents on another computer or even trying to restore a file from them onto a different machine. The other solution is to check how long they will last under threat of danger – some hard drives for example become unusable over time due to mechanical issues (this has more significance with high-end hard drives, not so much with cheaper ones). Testing your backup devices after you buy them is a smart move that will save you from this kind of problem.

Protect Your Computer From Damage

The best way to protect your computer from damage is to invest in a surge protector. This will help prevent damage caused by power surges and spikes that can occur when the electric supply suddenly dips or rises, which happens quite often in many parts of the world. Surge protectors are also useful for preventing equipment problems like static electricity, short circuits, overloading, and ground faults. These are electrical problems that can be caused by lightning strikes nearby or if there’s poor insulation on exterior wiring.

Use Antivirus and Anti-Spyware Software

The best way to protect your computer from malware and hackers is to use antivirus and anti-spyware software. Anti-virus programs are designed to keep all kinds of viruses away from your computer so they’re ideal for protecting data files too. They work by scanning everything that’s saved on your computer to make sure it’s free of malware, spyware, trojans, worms, and other harmful programs which are designed to corrupt data files.

This will prevent anyone from installing unauthorized software on your computer or using it for nefarious purposes (like stealing files, monitoring keystrokes, and taking screenshots of the desktop). It’s also important to ensure that your anti-virus program is running at all times because many viruses are designed to target data files on computers that aren’t protected by one. Anti-spyware software works in more or less the same way as anti-virus programs, but they’re more concerned with protecting you from spyware programs that can be used for monitoring browsing habits and stealing personal information.

Don’t Swap Flash Drives Around

The worst thing you can do with your flash drive is share it around with other people – each person who accesses it will put their data on the drive which may overwrite the files that are already there. This could cause data corruption which makes it difficult to identify files during recovery, not to mention how time-consuming it can be. To prevent this situation you should password protect your flash drive (this also helps if your data gets lost), keep the drive secure at all times, and make backups of important files regularly.

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Files are an important part of our work and life. Thus, it is very important to store them in a secure place that can be retrieved easily when needed. Though many ways have been discussed yet care needs to be taken at all times for keeping the files safe from harm’s way. with these things in mind, you will now be able to safeguard your files without any hassle.