Imagine this. You are happily browsing the Internet or typing something on a document, when suddenly, your computer freezes and then blanks out to a blue screen. Or you’re commuting to work and you go to take your smartphone from your pocket, only to find out that you’ve just been pick pocketed and it’s no longer there. Sure, your loss phone or your computer’s hard drive failure isn’t the end of the world – but it sure feels like it. Below are some tips on how you can protect yourself and prevent data loss.

Understand how important your data is
Did you know that statistics show that every week, 140,000 hard drives (the computer part that stores your data) crash in the United States alone? Further studies conducted about data loss, over 30 percent of users have lost 100 percent of their data from either a natural disaster, an accident, or a computer virus. Therefore, when your computer, tablets, or mobile device breaks or gets stolen, you not only face potentially paying to get it replaced but you also face the loss of your technology’s contents.

Think about it. On your phone alone, you have your contacts, your calendar schedule, your lists, your passwords, your credit card information, and your precious photos and videos. Loss of your computer data may be even more devastating, as you could have work documents, banking information, and other sensitive documents stored on your hard drive. Therefore, the first thing you must do is to realize how important it is to safeguard your technology in order to prevent the loss of valuable data.

Beware of potential risks
What are the actual risks your technology faces that could result in data loss? For one, there’s always physical damage. Therefore, make sure that you keep your computer in a safe, dry, and dust-free environment. Low traffic locations are the best places to keep your computer out of harm’s way.

Other large risks you need to be aware of are software threats like hardware failure and computer viruses, which is the cause of 45 percent of data loss. Viruses can be absolutely deadly to your computer and could wipe out all the contents on your computer if you’re not careful with what you’re downloading on the Internet. While there aren’t foolproof ways of preventing viruses, the best way is to install a virus detection program on your computer and keeping it updated.

The third largest risk to your data is natural disasters, like storms or fires. Lightning storms are the most common reason for data loss, as power surges can short-circuit your electricity and erase the data on your computers if it’s plugged into the wall.

Back up your files regularly
Although you can (and should) do all of the things above in order to better safeguard your technology, the best way to prevent data loss is to back your data up regularly. There are several data backup options, like offsite backup systems that store your data on a server that is physically away from your home or business. You could also use thumb drives or external hard drives, which allows you to manually backup your data.

However, the safest, most reliable backup method is using a trusted online could service to backup your data. Storing your documents, music, and photos in the cloud allows you to access your files anywhere there is Internet connection. There are also other advantages to cloud storage. For example, most cloud storage services allows for automatic backup, which means that you’re not the one responsible for having to backup your data.

As the world is slowly but surely getting more and more digital, we become more reliant on our technology. Therefore, making sure that your computers, smartphones, and tablets are protected from any potential threats is integral in keeping you and your data safe.