Back up your systems securely
System Rescue
Creating backups is one thing, making sure they’re secure is another. We offer some tips for ensuring the process is as painless as possible.
Making backups of your data is critical. If you don’t regularly create usable backups, any outages, disk failures, or administrative errors can cause permanent data loss. But, although backups address the availability (and to some degree integrity) aspects of the AIC security triad (availability, integrity, confidentiality), they can introduce significant risks with respect to the confidentiality or secrecy of your data. In other words, when you centralize all your data on removable storage (e.g., tape drives), things can get very bad very quickly if the tapes are misplaced or stolen.
Encrypted Backups
The solution, of course, is to encrypt your backups. Depending on the risk you’re willing to accept, strong encryption can even let you store your files in potentially insecure locations (e.g., a public cloud storage provider). In general, most backup programs support 256-bit AES, which is extremely strong, so with properly generated keys that are secured from attackers, your data should be safe from decryption for at least a few decades. However, you must consider several other issues when deciding how to apply encryption to your backups and how to manage your encryption keys.
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Canonical Bumps LTS Support to 12 years
If you're worried that your Ubuntu LTS release won't be supported long enough to last, Canonical has a surprise for you in the form of 12 years of security coverage.
-
Fedora 40 Beta Released Soon
With the official release of Fedora 40 coming in April, it's almost time to download the beta and see what's new.
-
New Pentesting Distribution to Compete with Kali Linux
SnoopGod is now available for your testing needs
-
Juno Computers Launches Another Linux Laptop
If you're looking for a powerhouse laptop that runs Ubuntu, the Juno Computers Neptune 17 v6 should be on your radar.
-
ZorinOS 17.1 Released, Includes Improved Windows App Support
If you need or desire to run Windows applications on Linux, there's one distribution intent on making that easier for you and its new release further improves that feature.
-
Linux Market Share Surpasses 4% for the First Time
Look out Windows and macOS, Linux is on the rise and has even topped ChromeOS to become the fourth most widely used OS around the globe.
-
KDE’s Plasma 6 Officially Available
KDE’s Plasma 6.0 "Megarelease" has happened, and it's brimming with new features, polish, and performance.
-
Latest Version of Tails Unleashed
Tails 6.0 is based on Debian 12 and includes GNOME 43.
-
KDE Announces New Slimbook V with Plenty of Power and KDE’s Plasma 6
If you're a fan of KDE Plasma, you'll be thrilled to hear they've announced a new Slimbook with an AMD CPU and the latest version of KDE Plasma desktop.
-
Monthly Sponsorship Includes Early Access to elementary OS 8
If you want to get a glimpse of what's in the pipeline for elementary OS 8, just set up a monthly sponsorship to help fund its continued existence.