10 Common Mistakes Organizations Make with Their Backup and Recovery Strategies

With the increased need to do more with less, it’s not uncommon for organizations to experience pitfalls that can jeopardize their data integrity and availability. Whether it’s neglecting to test backups or account for the unique challenges posed by ransomware, missteps can lead to operational disruptions with significant implications, including financial loss.

In this blog, we go beyond the basics with a list of the 10 most common mistakes organizations make. More importantly, we pair each mistake with an actionable solution designed to help you strengthen your approach, close gaps and ensure you’re ready to recover when the need arises, and provide key insights based on years of experience managing backup and recovery for organizations across the globe.

1. Not Testing Backups Regularly

• Mistake: Assuming backups are working without validation.
• Impact: Backups may be corrupted, incomplete or not restorable when needed.
• Solution: Implement regular, automated recovery tests to verify data integrity and restoration processes.

2. Inadequate Recovery Time Objective (RTO) and Recovery Point Objective (RPO) Planning

• Mistake: Failing to define or meet business-specific RTOs and RPOs.
• Impact: Data loss or downtime that exceeds business tolerance, leading to operational or financial damage.
• Solution: Align backup frequency and recovery capabilities with the criticality of data and application usage.

3.  Storing Backups in a Single Location

• Mistake: Keeping backups on-site or in the same cloud as production.
• Impact: Physical disasters, ransomware or cloud outages can destroy both live and backup data.
• Solution: Use the 3-2-1 rule — three copies of data, two different media, one offsite (or immutable/cloud-based).

4.  Overlooking Cloud and Software as a Service (SaaS) Backup Needs

• Mistake: Believing cloud services (e.g., Microsoft 365, Google Workspace) automatically back up all data.
• Impact: Accidental deletions, ransomware or retention policy expirations may lead to permanent loss.
• Solution: Utilize third-party backup solutions tailored for SaaS applications.

5.  Not Accounting for Ransomware and Malware

• Mistake: Allowing backups to be exposed to the same network as production systems.
• Impact: Encrypted or deleted backups during a cyberattack.
• Solution: Use immutable storage, air-gapped backups and backup segmentation.

6.  Neglecting Backup Security and Access Controls

• Mistake: Failing to limit or monitor who has access to backup systems.
• Impact: Insider threats or credential theft can lead to data manipulation or deletion.
• Solution: Enforce strong access controls, multi-factor authentication (MFA) and regular audit trails on backup systems.

7.  Underestimating the Complexity of Recovery

• Mistake: Focusing too much on backup and not enough on recovery workflows.
• Impact: Extended downtime due to slow, manual or unclear recovery processes.
• Solution: Document and regularly rehearse disaster recovery playbooks.

8. Ignoring Compliance and Legal Retention Requirements

• Mistake: Backups don’t meet industry or legal data retention standards, e.g., HIPAA, GDPR, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX), etc.
• Impact: Fines, legal consequences or inability to respond to audits or legal holds.
• Solution: Ensure backup policies align with regulatory and industry-specific requirements.

9.  Improper Versioning and Retention Policies

• Mistake: Keeping too few versions or retaining all data indefinitely.
• Impact: Inability to roll back to a clean version and excessive storage costs.
• Solution: Implement smart retention policies based on data criticality and change frequency.

10.   Failing to Train Staff and Communicate Recovery Plans

• Mistake: IT is aware of the recovery plan, but other departments are not.
• Impact: Confusion and delays during incidents.
• Solution: Include all relevant stakeholders in disaster recovery planning and training.

At CDW, we deliver specialized managed services for backup and recovery. In doing so, we regularly address a wide range of customer concerns. Below, we’ve compiled key insights and practical guidance drawn from some of the most common questions we receive.

• Align your backup strategy with disaster recovery and business continuity.
  Aside from correcting common mistakes, organizations also need to think more broadly about how backup and recovery fits into their larger resilience strategy. Organizations can do this by ensuring that backup processes support defined RTOs and RPOs, while integrating seamlessly into broader response workflows. This alignment ensures rapid, reliable data restoration that minimizes downtime and meets both operational and compliance requirements.
  
  
• Use immutability to protect backups from ransomware attacks.
  Ransomware attacks are top of mind for many leaders. Having an immutable backup copy ensures that data cannot be altered or deleted, even by ransomware or malicious actors, providing a secure, tamper-proof version for recovery. This safeguards critical data and enables reliable restoration without paying a ransom or relying on compromised systems.
  
  
• Understand the differences between built-in immutability versus add-on solutions.
  Built-in immutability is natively integrated into the backup platform or storage system, offering seamless protection with optimized performance and management. In contrast, add-on solutions provide immutability through external tools or layers, which may increase complexity and require additional configuration, monitoring or compatibility considerations.
  
  
• Keep your data protection strategy aligned with evolving compliance standards.
  Organizations ensure their data protection strategy keeps up with evolving compliance standards by regularly reviewing and updating policies, technologies and processes to align with current regulations. They also conduct audits, engage in staff training and leverage tools that support compliance features like encryption, retention and access controls.
  
  
• If you operate in a highly regulated industry, seek support if you’re having difficulty managing compliance rather than waiting until more serious challenges arise.
  At CDW, we’ve found that industries such as healthcare, finance, government and legal services face the most stringent requirements for backup and data protection. These sectors must comply with strict regulations such as the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS), the Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA) HIPAA, SOX and GDPR, which mandate secure data handling, long-term retention, auditability and rapid recovery to protect sensitive or mission-critical information.
  
  
• Implement a clean room environment to strengthen recovery and security.
  A "clean room" in recovery refers to a secure, isolated environment where organizations can safely restore and analyze backup data without the risk of reintroducing malware, ransomware or other threats into the production environment.
  
  Here’s why it’s becoming important:
  As cyberattacks — especially ransomware — become more sophisticated, there's a growing risk that backup data may also be infected. A clean room allows IT teams to validate backups, scan for malware and test recovery processes in a quarantined setting before full restoration. This reduces the risk of reinfection and ensures a safer, more controlled recovery, making it a critical part of modern cyberresilient strategies.

At CDW, we have the expertise and capabilities to help your organization integrate solutions that address common backup and recovery challenges while offloading the burden of stringent industry requirements — so your team can stay focused on driving business goals and innovation.