The COVID-19 pandemic sparked a remote work and learning revolution. This new way of work necessitated new ways to collaborate with others. Though Office 365 is fueling worker productivity, there is one common pitfall to avoid – the data created through Office 365 is not automatically protected by Microsoft. While Microsoft offers limited protection, data is still vulnerable to user error like accidental deletion and malicious acts like ransomware. A loss or breach of this data could do serious damage to an organization’s ability to perform its mission and result in the loss of public trust.
Protect Your Data Now
As organizations moved to remote work and learning at the beginning of the pandemic, many were focused on simply getting devices and connectivity to users. Office 365 data protection was not top of mind in the rush. Now that remote work and learning are here to stay, this is the time to start protecting your critical data by implementing an Office 365 back up solution.
Besides the pressing need to protect your data to ensure access to mission-critical applications, now is the perfect time to implement a back up solution because the federal government is providing billions in relief funding in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Passed in March 2021, the American Rescue Plan (ARP) totals $1.9T and provides nearly $500M in direct aid to government and education agencies.
Using ARP Funds to Protect Office 365 Data
There is a good deal of confusion about what is and what is not eligible for use with ARP funding. In reality, it is very simple! ARP funds may be used to respond to the public health and economic emergency caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. That is very broad – by design. The funds are meant to used in the way that makes the most sense for each agency. These are three ways implementing an Office 365 data protection solution align with eligible ARP use cases.
- Supporting Government Services – Office 365 enables mission-critical collaboration, productivity, and functionality for government and education agencies.
- Responding to the Public Health and Economic Emergency – Office 365 supports agencies providing health and social services.
- Responding to the Economic Emergency – Office 365 supports agencies that provide economic development services to businesses and citizens.
Get Your Project Funded
Tego understands the importance of Microsoft Office 365 and its function within your organization. We understand the challenges IT leaders face protecting all the data created by these applications. Tego has the engineering experience to expertly protect your data and the public sector insight to help you get your project funded. The American Rescue Plan IT Road Map can help you get your project funded. See this ARP Checklist to put together a project proposal. Ransomware attacks are in the news every single day. More and more users are working and learning remotely on a myriad of devices and networks. The federal government is providing the funding, so now is the time to back up your Office 365 data!
For more information about the ARP or Office 365, contact us today.