Most computer equipment these days is pretty reliable. But what happens if your computer is lost or stolen? Or you drop your phone in a puddle? And, sometimes, stuff just breaks. Be ready for these events by backing up your data using one or more of the methods below.
Store important university information on department share drives
Faculty and staff should store important university information on their department share drives, rather than on their local hard drives. If your department doesn’t have a share drive, contact the IT Central to arrange for one. Share drives are not available to students.
•
Use Google Drive to store copies of files
Every New School student, as well as every faculty and staff member, has access to Google Drive, with unlimited storage. For students, Google Drive is a great place to store just about anything related to studying at The New School. However, it should not be used to store sensitive personal information such as Social Security numbers, passport numbers, bank account and credit card numbers, or other financial information. For faculty and staff, Google Drive is acceptable for use with Unrestricted, Restricted, and FERPA-protected Confidential information. Confidential information subject to other laws and regulations (HIPAA, GLBA, PCI DSS, etc.) should not be stored, processed, transmitted, or shared through Google Drive.
•
Regularly copy important files to a USB external hard drive or flash drive
Be sure, however, to protect the hard drive or flash drive by storing it in a secure location (such as a locked file cabinet or desk drawer). Do not keep it in your laptop bag; if your laptop is lost or stolen, your backup will be too.
•
Regularly copy important files to an online storage service
Online storage services offer small amounts of free storage with additional storage available for purchase. Some of them also offer automatic synchronization of certain files, encryption, and other services. Some of the more popular services include Dropbox.com, Box.com, Apple iCloud, Microsoft OneDrive, and the consumer Google G Suite platform.
Faculty and staff should note that the license agreements for external cloud services not offered through The New School do not provide legal protection or accountability for New School administrative information, and they generally do not comply with the information security and privacy safeguards required by state and federal laws and regulations or university policies. New School faculty and staff may not use these services to store, process, transmit, or share Restricted or Confidential information, because doing so may put the employee and The New School at risk of violating FERPA, GLBA, HIPAA, or other laws and regulations.
•
Consider the use of an online backup service
Several services are available that will automatically back up your computer to an Internet (“cloud”) site for safekeeping. Some of the more popular ones include MozyHome, CrashPlan, Carbonite, SugarSync, and Backblaze.
Faculty and staff should note that the license agreements for cloud backup services not offered through The New School do not provide legal protection or accountability for New School administrative information, and they generally do not comply with the information security and privacy safeguards required by state and federal laws and regulations or university policies. New School faculty and staff may not use these services to store, process, transmit, or share Restricted or Confidential information, because doing so may put the employee and The New School at risk of violating FERPA, GLBA, HIPAA, or other laws and regulations.