Managed service providers (MSPs) play a crucial role in helping organizations adopt and optimize their use of Microsoft 365. As adoption of this software suite continues to grow, so does the importance of having robust backup and data recovery solutions in place. Unfortunately, Microsoft 365 does not provide such tools natively, leaving organizations vulnerable to unplanned downtime and data loss during a cyberattack.
Let’s explore how MSPs can drive business growth by supporting their clients with Microsoft 365 backup and data recovery.
Your data, your responsibility
The Microsoft 365 shared responsibility model is a crucial part of how MSPs can support growth. By understanding and adhering to this model, you can help clients avoid data loss and disruptions to business operations.
This model is based on the principle that each party in a relationship are partially responsible for the success of that relationship. In the context of Microsoft 365, this means that both Microsoft and its customers have a role to play in ensuring the availability and security of data.
Microsoft is responsible for the infrastructure and security of the Microsoft 365 platform. This includes ensuring that stored data is protected against local threats as well as external ones, such as hackers.
Customers are responsible for their own data, including backups and recovery. It is the customer's responsibility to ensure that their data is backed up in a way that meets their needs and that they have a plan in place for recovering data in the event of an outage or disaster.
MSPs can play a critical role in supporting customers in meeting their responsibilities under the shared responsibility model. This includes providing guidance on best practices for backing up and recovering data and helping customers implement and maintain their backup and recovery solutions.
What risks do clients face using Microsoft 365 without a data protection solution?
As an MSP, you are uniquely positioned to help your clients protect their data. Your clients face many risks when using Microsoft 365 without an appropriate data protection solution in place, including:
- Data loss or corruption: Without a comprehensive backup solution in place, businesses using Microsoft 365 may not be able to recover in the event of data loss, corruption or accidental deletion.
- Cyberattacks: The increasing severity and frequency of cyberattacks, especially ransomware, means that there is a greater risk of unplanned downtime and data loss for businesses using Microsoft 365 without a backup solution in place.
- Compliance challenges: Microsoft 365 retention policies for deleted data are relatively short. This can be problematic for businesses that must retain data for compliance purposes.
- Limited options for post-deletion recovery: Microsoft 365 only backs up data stored in the cloud; if a business has on-premises data, they need a third-party backup solution. This can be challenging and may not provide the level of protection businesses need.
Services MSPs can offer to protect Microsoft 365 workloads
MSPs are well-positioned to take advantage of the rapidly increasing adoption of Microsoft 365. New, high-profit services can safeguard clients' data while maximizing the potential of this powerful productivity suite. This helps MSPs differentiate themselves in the market with specialized expertise, and improves overall satisfaction while fostering long-term relationships.
- Migration and deployment services: Help clients with the migration and deployment of Microsoft 365, including setup and configuration of the platform and its various components.
- Management and monitoring: Provide ongoing management and monitoring of clients’ Microsoft 365 environments, including troubleshooting and resolving issues, managing user accounts and permissions, and monitoring for security threats.
- Training and support: Offer training and support services to help clients fully utilize the features and capabilities of Microsoft 365, including Office 365, Exchange Online and SharePoint Online.
- Compliance and security: Assist clients with compliance and security requirements related to Microsoft 365, such as data encryption, multi-factor authentication and monitoring for potential security threats.
- Backup and disaster recovery: Provide backup and disaster recovery solutions for clients' Microsoft 365 data to ensure that they can quickly recover in the event of data loss or system failure.
- Vulnerability management: Monitor clients’ Microsoft 365 environments for vulnerabilities and close security gaps promptly with automated patch management, protecting against exploitation.
- Data loss prevention: Implement data loss prevention (DLP) solutions to protect clients’ sensitive data from accidental or intentional leaks.
Considering the vast volumes of sensitive/personal information that most businesses store in Microsoft 365, keeping Outlook.com emails and OneDrive content safe should be a critical part of your overall data protection strategy.
Securing Microsoft 365 with Acronis Cyber Protect Cloud
Acronis Cyber Protect Cloud offers agentless backup and recovery technologies to ensure your clients' Microsoft 365 data is backed up and recoverable. Additionally, it monitors all Microsoft products for vulnerabilities and closes security gaps promptly with automated patch management, protecting remote workers and preventing exploitation attempts via Microsoft Teams.
- Safeguard Microsoft 365 data, mailboxes and applications from a wide range of threats.
- Ensure clients’ business continuity and meet shorter RTOs (recovery time objective).
- Keep clients compliant with legal and regulatory mandates.
- Access backed-up client Microsoft 365 data quickly with easy search capabilities.
The platform includes a suite of tools that can be smoothly integrated into your offering, making it a truly comprehensive and customizable solution. Easily add and upsell new services to create new revenue streams and deliver comprehensive cyber protection that’s tailored to your clients’ unique needs.
When you build your service offering with Acronis Cyber Protect Cloud, you’re not only getting the best backup and recovery tools for Microsoft 365. You also gain access to a wide range of cutting-edge security technologies, including Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) capabilities that offer protection against impersonations, zero-day attacks, weaponized links/attachments and credential phishing campaigns.
Anti-spam filtering and domain-based message authentication stops malicious emails from ever reaching end users. Automation helps to identify and address threats without delay. Finally, data loss prevention capabilities help protect confidential information by preventing unauthorized access or careless/malicious behavior in the handling of sensitive data.
This guest blog is courtesy of Acronis. Read more Acronis guest blogs here. Regularly contributed guest blogs are part of ChannelE2E’s sponsorship program.
