Microsoft 365’s Built-in Data Protections Aren’t Enough: The Case for SaaS Data Backup

Statista says there are 1,313,720 companies in the U.S. using Microsoft Office 365 as of February 2024. So, the odds are good that your mid-size enterprise is one of those companies. Office 365 delivers essential software-as-a-service (SaaS) capabilities like email, file storage, and collaboration tools, so any data loss or downtime can be costly, if not disastrous. 

Don’t assume that your data is always secure just because it is in the Microsoft 365 cloud. Security Magazine recently noted that two Microsoft SharePoint flaws have been observed that could let attackers trigger downloads and exfiltrate data. The Firewall Times timeline of Microsoft data breaches through 2024 highlights breaches caused by everything from Russian hackers to a misconfiguration that exposed 38 million records. And in a March post we wrote about how Microsoft 365 is being targeted by a multi-factor authentication (MFA) phishing kit.

Microsoft’s shared responsibility model clearly states that “Regardless of the type of deployment, you always retain the following responsibilities: Data; Endpoints; Account; Access management.” So, it’s essential to understand what data protections Microsoft 365 offers and how to ensure your SaaS data is secure and can always be recovered.

Microsoft 365: SaaS Vulnerabilities Despite Built-in Protections

Microsoft 365 offers built-in data protection features, including:

• Retention policies range from retain-only, where content is retained forever or for a specific amount of time, to delete-only, where content is permanently deleted after a specified period, and retain and then delete, where content is retained for a specified period and then permanently deleted.

• Versioning, another SharePoint online feature, keeps the last 500 or fewer major versions of a document, allowing users to restore previous versions if changes are made.

• Recycle Bin, from which deleted files can be restored within a specified timeframe.

• Litigation Hold, which ensures emails are preserved for legal and compliance purposes (even if users delete them).

• Security features, including multi-factor authentication (MFA) and advanced threat protection (ATP).

The problem isn’t that Microsoft isn’t doing its level best to protect your SaaS data. Your data is vulnerable regardless of these protections, as illustrated by the long list on the Firewall Times site.

Why You Need a Microsoft 365 SaaS Backup Solution

SaaS backup fills the vulnerability gaps in Microsoft 365, providing a comprehensive solution to protect data hosted in the Microsoft SaaS cloud. Arcserve SaaS Backup fully covers data stored in Exchange Online, OneDrive, Teams and Groups, SharePoint, and public folders. It also protects your Microsoft Entra ID and Microsoft Dynamics 365 data.

Most importantly, Arcserve SaaS Backup features immutable backups using a blockchain-based algorithm.Immutable backups of your SaaS data can’t be altered or deleted by unauthorized users, providing a last line of defense against ransomware, malware, and malicious users and peace of mind knowing that your SaaS data can always be recovered.

The solution employs encryption for your data at rest and in transit, with default 30-day delete retention. Secure, scalable, and available by design, Arcserve SaaS Backup stores four copies of your backup data in two different data centers within the same region, guaranteeing data sovereignty and redundancy.

Cost-Effective and Simple SaaS Backup

Arcserve SaaS Backup is the most cost-effective solution, with a single price per seat that includes all SaaS data protection functionalities. You can quickly and easily customize backup retention settings to meet your compliance requirements, and limitless data storage in an online cloud tier ensures fast access and restores. There aren’t any additional charges for data traffic, such as ingress, egress, or transaction fees, either.

Setup is simple—it takes under five minutes before protection starts—and a single pane of glass with multi-tenant and role-based access controls (RBAC) gives you complete control over your protected data.

Arcserve SaaS Backup also protects Salesforce, Google Workspace, and ZenDesk data.

To learn more about Arcserve SaaS Backup, request a demo. If you’re ready to see what comprehensive SaaS data protection can do for your organization, check out our 30-day Free Trial Offer.