Protect Your Data and Business Before the Next Hurricane Hits

Every year, the Atlantic hurricane season brings with it not only dangerous weather but also a major business risk: operational downtime, data loss, and long-term reputational damage. While physical preparedness—boarding up windows, securing supplies, and ensuring safety—is second nature to many, far too many businesses fail to protect their most valuable digital asset: data.

In an increasingly digital world, your business continuity depends just as much on protecting your servers, backups, and communications as it does on securing your physical infrastructure. With hurricane season approaching, reviewing your disaster preparedness from a cybersecurity and IT resilience standpoint is time.

Here’s your step-by-step guide to protecting your business before the next storm hits.

1. Evaluate Your Disaster Recovery (DR) and Business Continuity Plan (BCP)

You're already at risk if you don’t have a formal Disaster Recovery or Business Continuity Plan. These aren’t just documents—they’re your company’s survival playbooks.

A solid BCP/DR plan should include:

• A communications protocol (internal and external)

• Critical data backup and restoration processes

• Defined Recovery Time Objectives (RTO) and Recovery Point Objectives (RPO)

• Contact lists for key personnel and vendors

• Remote work and emergency access procedures

• Predefined failover to cloud or secondary infrastructure

Don’t just check that you have a plan—test it. Simulate hurricane-related scenarios, such as power loss or ISP failure, to see how fast your team can recover operations.

2. Implement off-site and Cloud-Based Backups

You're not safe if your backups are stored in the exact physical location as your primary data center—or even in the same region. Hurricanes can wipe out entire facilities, including servers, storage, and local tapes.

What to do:

• Use geographically dispersed cloud backup solutions

• Automate daily or hourly incremental backups for critical data

• Confirm your backup restoration process works, not just that the backups exist

• Encrypt data in transit and at rest

viLogics recommends a 3-2-1 approach:

• 3 copies of your data

• 2 different types of storage

• 1 copy stored offsite or in the cloud

3. Harden Your Infrastructure Against Power and Connectivity Loss

Downtime isn’t just about damage—it’s about interruption. Power, followed by internet access, is one of the first things to fail during a hurricane.

What you need in place:

• Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPS) for servers and key hardware

• Backup generators are tested and serviced regularly

• Redundant internet connections from different carriers ***(StarLink)

• A mobile hotspot plan for emergency communications

• Surge protectors and environmental monitors in your server rooms

If you rely on on-prem systems, consider hybrid cloud or full cloud migration before the season starts.

4. Secure Remote Work Capabilities

Hurricanes force evacuations and closures. Your staff may be unable to reach your offices, but that doesn’t mean business should stop.

Set up:

• VPN access to all critical systems

• Role-based permissions and multi-factor authentication (MFA)

• A cloud-based VoIP phone system for remote call forwarding

• Secure remote desktop access or virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI)

Bonus: Remote readiness also protects your business from cyberattacks, pandemics, and other disruptions.

5. Cybersecurity Threats Increase During Disasters—Be Ready

Criminals love chaos. Phishing attacks, social engineering, and ransomware campaigns often spike during natural disasters. They know your defenses may be down—and your employees distracted.

Stay protected with:

• Next-gen Endpoint Detection & Response (EDR)

• Security Awareness Training (especially around storm-season phishing lures)

• A 24/7 Managed SOC to monitor threats in real-time

• Immutable backup solutions that protect data from ransomware encryption

Consider deploying a Zero Trust model to limit lateral movement in case of a breach.

6. Use a vCISO or MSSP for Strategic Preparedness

Most SMBs and mid-sized enterprises don’t have full-time cybersecurity strategists or compliance officers. That’s where working with a Virtual CISO (vCISO) or Managed Security Services Provider (MSSP) comes in.

A vCISO can:

• Audit your current hurricane-readiness posture

• Align your DR/BCP to NIST, CIS v8, or CMMC frameworks

• Ensure insurance coverage requirements are met (many now mandate cybersecurity best practices)

• Create tabletop exercises and simulate storm-related scenarios

At viLogics, we’ve helped hundreds of companies in hurricane-prone areas build business resilience from the inside out.

7. Check Your Cyber Insurance—and the Fine Print

Many policies don’t cover data loss due to natural disasters—unless certain precautions are in place. Some insurers even exclude coverage if the proper cybersecurity framework (like CIS 8.0) isn’t followed.

Before the next storm, check:

• Is your business pre-qualified for a claim?

• Do you have a validated BCP and cyber risk assessment?

• Does your insurance cover data recovery, ransomware, and business interruption?

If not, it’s time to find a provider (like viLogics) that includes built-in cyber insurance with platform deployment.

8. Print and Store Critical Contact Lists and Response Plans

We sometimes forget that paper still matters in the digital world, especially when networks are down.

Print and store:

• Key vendor contacts

• System recovery instructions

• Facility access codes

• BCP summary steps

• Emergency employee directories

Store them off-site, in waterproof containers, and in your "Break Glass" emergency binder.

9. Deploy a Cybersecurity Emergency USB Kit

A pre-configured USB toolkit with critical tools and documentation can be a lifesaver.

It should include:

• Emergency recovery scripts

• Offline malware scanners

• Network diagnostic tools

• Secure password manager

• Configuration backups for firewalls, switches, and routers

• A copy of your DR/BCP plan

viLogics offers clients a Break Glass Emergency USB as part of our Total Secure Office solution because every second counts when disaster strikes.

Final Thoughts: Hurricanes Are Inevitable—Downtime Doesn’t Have to Be

You can’t stop the next storm, but you can protect your business from becoming the next victim. Today's steps will determine whether you bounce back fast or face weeks of disruption, lost data, and costly recovery.

If you’re unsure where to start, viLogics can help you:
✅ Audit your disaster preparedness
✅ Align with CIS v8.0 controls
✅ Automate your cloud backups
✅ Pre-qualify you for cyber insurance
✅ Deploy our Total Secure Office (TSO) protection

Let’s prepare smarter, not later.

Want to review a Hurricane Cyber Risk Readiness Checklist?