Understanding the mission critical assets layer of cyber security

Cyber threats don’t knock. They barge in. That’s why forming a multi-layered fortress is important – each layer a wall, gate, or watchtower designed to keep intruders at bay. At the very centre of this fortress lies your mission critical assets where your most valuable software systems and data reside. If attackers breach this layer, they’ve reached the crown jewels of your operation – and the consequences can be devastating. 

What are mission critical assets? 

Your business runs on mission-critical assets – the digital tools that keep everything moving. Lose them, and operations stall. And so does your revenue and customer trust. 

Think of your electronic medical record (EMR) systems if you’re in healthcare, AutoCAD software in engineering, or your customer financial databases in financial services. If any of these were compromised, your business could grind to a halt – or worse, suffer irreversible reputational damage. 

Look at what happened with the M&S breach earlier this year – the ransomware attack caused havoc. From customer data being stolen, online orders being affected, order processing issues, to brand reputation tarnished, financial losses and more. M&S is a big company and still got heavily affected by the attack. If you’re a smaller company, the repercussions are likely to be more critical, even resulting in a complete shut down like these companies. 

How to protect your mission critical assets 

Protect your mission critical assets with backup and disaster recovery.  

With backup, you make copies of your data across all the places it resides – including your apps, databases, virtual environments, cloud infrastructure and emails. 

Use the backups to restore IT systems and business operations for business continuity, compliance with frameworks like NIST and ISO 27001. And not forgetting peace of mind.  

A survey by Apricorn found that half of UK IT leaders rely on backup amid data recovery issues. 

It’s important to note that you need to regularly test your backups to ensure they’re working properly.  

Disaster recovery is a broader strategy encompassing your policies, procedures, and systems for maintaining business continuity and quickly restoring your IT infrastructure and operations after a major disruptive event. It involves detailed planning for worst-case scenarios, including prioritising applications, establishing redundant systems, and defining recovery objectives. 

How to identify your mission critical assets? 

Start by asking yourself: 

Without access to ____________, could my team do their jobs? If ____________ stopped working, would we lose revenue? If the database containing ____________ was leaked, would it be catastrophic? Documenting these answers helps you prioritise what needs protection. Every business is different, so your mission-critical assets will be unique to your operations. 

What solutions can help? 

Acronis Backup and Disaster Recovery: A unified platform for data protection, cyber security, and recovery across physical, virtual, and cloud environments. It offers full-image and file-level backup, instant recovery, flexible storage (local, cloud, hybrid), and AI-powered malware protection. One of our clients, Affinus saved over £8000 with Acronis backup and support from us. 

Veeam Backup and Disaster Recovery: A robust solution for backing up and replicating your virtual, physical, and cloud machines. It centralises operations, minimises downtime, and includes automated testing to ensure your recovery plans work when you need them most. 

Don’t have the resource to manage your Microsoft 365 backup effectively? 

Focus on what you do best and leave your backups to us. With our Microsoft 365 Managed Backup Service, we manage the backup for Exchange, SharePoint, OneDrive, and Teams for you.  

Secure your mission critical assets 

We’ll help you protect your data from loss, minimise your downtime, and ensure business continuity after an unexpected event like a cyberattack, human error, or natural disaster.  

If you’re not actively protecting your mission-critical assets, you’re leaving the most vital parts of your business exposed. By identifying what matters most and implementing robust software solutions, you can build a resilient cyber security posture that withstands modern threats. 

So, take a moment today to assess your digital crown jewels. Because when it comes to cyber security, protecting what matters most isn’t just smart – it’s mission-critical. 

Book a free seven layers of security assessment with our cyber security team.