WhatsApp Downtime – Disrupting against Disruption

#WhatsApp Downtime Article – #Disrupting against Disruption?

This morning (25/10/2022) an outage was reported for WhatsApp, preventing many from being able to send messages on the popular instant messenger provider. Thankfully in this case, no data was lost but what it does highlight is that even mega corporations like Meta are still subject to systems going offline unplanned.??

For the everyday business however, a sudden outage could be catastrophic, especially if no safeguards have been put in place. The type of business will determine the true damaging factor downtime can cause, so we must consider these scenarios that could fall upon us.?

Just how damaging can an outage really be??

• If your business allows customers to order or access online services, and you have an internet failure?

An outage results in customers no longer being able to place orders or access online services.?

• Do you store live data on Servers and don’t have a UPS???

A power failure could lead to damage or destruction of data from unsafe shutdowns.??

• Do you run a critical service that requires you to track in real-time?

Either a power outage or an internet outage would escalate a potentially critical situation.??

So, what should businesses consider to reduce future risks??

Dependant on how your data is stored and how it is accessed will ultimately determine the best safeguards you could put in place but there are key implementations that can be considered in all cases.?

• Do you have a failover Internet Line??

If your main internet connection went down, do you have a back-up line???

Is your internet connection a major factor in your business operations? ?

• Do you have a UPS in place to protect against unplanned power outages???

Do you store business-critical data on equipment in your offices???

Would having no power lead to the business operations ceasing? ?

• Do you have a backup of your data???

Is your data stored on site or in the cloud???

Can you afford for any of that data to be inaccessible or worse, irrecoverable???

Conclusion ?

Now, I’m aware some readers will be thinking – this is all expensive safeguards for a ‘what if’ scenario. The question to ask yourself when thinking that is:?

How long can your business survive disruption? ?