Fergie's Tech Blog

Businesses And Networks Are Unprepared For Disasters: AT&T Survey

Matthew Friedman writes in Networking Pipeline:

Is your network prepared for a disaster like hurricane Katrina? A new report done by AT&T and the International Association of Emergency Managers (IAEM) suggests that many enterprise networks are not, and that a surprisingly large proportion of companies have made continuity planning a low priority.

The study, "Disaster Planning in the Private Sector: A Look at the State of Business Continuity in the U.S.," found that almost one third of U.S. businesses do not have continuity plans, and that nearly 40% of the 1200 companies surveyed reported that continuity planning was not a priority. More than 40% of the companies surveyed do not have off-site back-up or redundant servers and almost a third have failed to implement basic network security measures.

Considering the costs involved, AT&T chief marketing officer Kathleen Flaherty commented that this kind of attitude was shortsighted. "With today's heavy reliance on constant access to information, even a few hours of downtime can have catastrophic consequences, including huge financial losses, a tarnished reputation and lost customer goodwill," she said in a statement.

posted by Fergie @ 9/13/2005 07:14:00 AM