KENT companies are being warned that unless they back up their computer data on a regular basis they could go out of business overnight.

The stark warning follows recent research by Business Link Kent which found that only 32 per cent of the county’s businesses take a copy of their computer files every day to protect them from viruses and damage, while 24 per cent never back up their data at all.

Eric Friend, ICT and e-business adviser at BLK, said: "This is a very real threat to Kent businesses. If a company suddenly finds it cannot access data that is used every day, then it could go out of business extremely quickly.

"With such extensive use of IT systems most businesses are at risk, whether the damage is accidental, such as by fire or flood, or deliberate sabotage, which can include computer viruses or theft.

"The companies that are particularly at risk are those that store vital information on their computers. Most businesses keep electronic files that they simply cannot afford to lose, such as details of payroll and invoices, and a customer and supplier database."

Difficulties arising from the loss of data can include problems in paying staff, complying with data protection law, taking customer orders, having deliveries cancelled because you have not paid your suppliers and having to begin work again, wasting valuable time.

Back ups enable businesses to continue trading even if data has been lost.

Best practice for backing up data includes giving one person the responsibility for backing up and designating a second to cover for absence, using a different disk or tape to back up each day of the week, and keeping back-ups off-site, away from the main business premises, for example in a bank box.

Additionally, with the advent of broadband, it is now possible to back up online to secure remote data storage facilities.

For further advice on protecting your data, contact Business Link Kent on 08457 226655, info@businesslinkkent.com or visit www.businesslinkkent.com/securedata.