Studies Continue to Show Consumers are Leaving Precious Digital Files Unprotected



Several high profile instances recently have served as reminders to consumers as to the value of the data on their computers. Wild fires in California destroyed many hard drives filled with family photos, music, financial records and more. Movie director Francis Ford Coppola has offered a handsome reward for the return of the external hard drive containing the script for his latest movie. The drive was taken by thieves who broke into his home.

While these instances have brought data backup to the forefront, data shows consumers still are not prioritizing the protection of their data. A recent study by Seagate shows that 35 percent of those surveyed in the U.S. are neglecting to make backup copies of digital content stored on their computer.

Carbonite, Inc., the leader in online PC backup, has also seen the trend through its own data, as well. A recent survey conducted by Carbonite indicates that 65 percent of PC owners have already experienced serious data loss, yet 68 percent of people never back up or back up only sporadically. Only 9 percent of people are aware that online backup services like Carbonite exist and can eliminate all their risk for a few dollars per month.

Confusion also exists about what consumers need to do to back up files and the difference between storage and backup. External hard drives serve as an appropriate storage solution, but can be easily damaged and leave files vulnerable. USA Today reminded its readers in a recent article, "Maybe you've digitized your old pictures and backed them up on discs or an external hard drive. But that does no good if natural disaster hits, and you can't get to them in time."

As a conclusion to its survey demonstrating how consumers are not prioritizing backup, Seagate provides tips on how to use external hard drives, including one about taking data off-site. "For added protection against natural disaster, fire or theft, rotate two drives with one offsite or use an online storage solution."

Carbonite's data suggest that users are far less likely to back up if it requires any effort. Solutions such as rotating hard drives to different locations will work for only the most diligent and dedicated users.

David Friend, CEO of Carbonite, said "If it requires any effort, it just won't get done. Backup is one of those tasks that's easy to put off until tomorrow. The good news about online backup services like Carbonite is that they are very easy to set up, and once installed it is completely automatic. The user never has to think about backup again."

Several vendors, including Carbonite, offer unlimited backup for about $5 per month. Carbonite encrypts users' files and sends them over the Internet to a secure data center where they are stored on redundant disk arrays. The service runs continuously in the background and takes the hassle out of protecting the irreplaceable contents of consumers' computers.

Since it was launched, Carbonite has backed up more than two billion files and in the past year, Carbonite's customers have been able to recover more than 160 million digital photos, documents, e-mails and other files that otherwise would have been lost forever. On average, Carbonite backs up the equivalent of: more than 24,000 photos every minute; more than two million files every hour; and more than 9,000 songs every minute.

About Carbonite

Carbonite launched its Online PCBackup service in May 2006. Carbonite's industry-first offer of unlimited backup space for a flat low price revolutionized the market for consumer and small business backup services. So far the company has backed up more than two billion files, has restored more than 100 million lost files for its customers and has a large data center where capacity is measured in petabytes. There are Carbonite users in nearly 100 countries.

Founded in 2005, Carbonite believes that computer users should not have to think about backup. The company's mission is to provide an affordable, reliable, secure and easy-to-use solution for the mainstream computer user. Carbonite is available to consumers and small business through numerous channels, including its corporate Web site, major US retailers and international distributors. For more information, please visit



Studies Continue to Show Consumers are Leaving Precious Digital Files Unprotected