Morgan Community College – Ag and Business Management
File: Study Guide – Protecting Your Data 1
Study Guide
Protecting Your Data
Introduction
This study guide is intended to give you ideas and experience in protecting your
financial analysis information. Protecting information includes making backup copies of
your data, providing safeguards against viruses, worms, and unauthorized access to your
data.
Overview
One of the most exasperating things about computers is that as a technology they
are still way more unreliable than a lot of other technological wonders that we take for
granted. One of the ways that we are troubled by computers is that we occasionally lose
information to either hardware failure, mistakes in using the computer, or by
unknowingly allowing viruses to invade our computers.
The suggestions in this study guide will help you reduce the chances of data loss
in the following ways: by showing you how to create backup copies of your data; by
taking your through a step-by-step process of doing a test restore to prove that the backup
copy will work if needed; and by explaining some of the terminology and behaviors that
are common to the group of programs collectively called viruses or worms. We will work
through a checklist that will help you gauge your risk of data loss. We will also explore
some of the more common methods to back up your data and look at ways of restricting
others’ access to your data.
Not If, but When
If you use computers for useful things, you will experience some data loss. The
degree of data loss may be very minor, such as the electricity going off while entering a
transaction, resulting in you having to re-enter that transaction once you get the computer
running again. At the other extreme, you may have your entire computer destroyed by
fire or other catastrophic event. Other events can leave your computer in working
condition, but leaves you unable to access your data.
Types of Potential Data Loss
When you are missing data it doesn’t much matter what sort of data loss it is.
But, it does make a difference when you are looking at strategies for safeguarding the
information. Here is a list of three types of data loss and brief suggestions to prevent
them.
• Human Error- This type of data loss is basically an error on the part of the user.
The computer is working fine; the operator has made some sort of mistake such as
accidentally deleting a file. Or they changed and saved a file they now wish they
hadn’t. Suggestions include: routine and systematic backup of the data; don’t be too
tidy with the recycle bin (you may be able to retrieve a deleted file from it); Saving
files under a new name before beginning to modify them.
