According to new research commissioned by Mozy, an online backup service, a third of Brits have lost precious digital photos forever due to a computer failure. The research has revealed the average Brit has over 1,500 photos or videos stored on a computer. A fifth of all respondents do not back them up at all, and over a quarter only backup data on a CD, USB stick or external hard drive. Mozy argues that a house fire or similar accident is just as likely to destroy these media and devices as a PC, and offers its MozyHome online backup service to those worried about data loss.

Website: An overview of consumer backup habits in the UK and Ireland

Mozy Press Release

Millions of Brits Lose Precious Memories

London — June 24, 2010 — According to new research, a third of Brits have lost precious digital photos forever due to a computer failure. Holiday snaps, baby photos and pictures capturing special occasions such as birthdays, weddings, anniversaries and graduation ceremonies are the most common photos lost. On average, four years of memories have disappeared.

The research, commissioned by MozyTM, the world’s most trusted online backup service, reveals that the average Brit has over 1,500 photos or videos stored on a computer. One in five (21 per cent) people does not back them up at all, and over a quarter only backup data on a CD, USB or external hard drive.

Photos are not the only files at risk; two thirds of UK consumers who store digital music on computers and laptops don’t ever backup, despite 15 per cent admitting that they had lost their digital music collection in the past. Respondents to the survey valued the total data stored on their home computers at an average of £12,484 – 2,500 times the monthly cost of protecting it online.

“People think that backing up to CDs, USB keys and external hard drives is enough to keep their data safe but, whilst this is great way to get your data back quickly, it’s still at a massive risk of loss,” said Claire Galbois-Alcaix, of Mozy.  “Backing up to this sort of device can work perfectly if your computer fails but, if your laptop has been stolen or soaked by a burst water pipe, local backup typically falls foul to the same fate as the computer: in a house fire, a CD is just as likely to melt as a PC. That’s why a backup service that automatically makes a copy of your data locally as well as storing it securely online is such a good idea.”

In a demonstration of just how central personal PCs - and their role in keeping family photos, private information as well as music and video collections – have become to our lives, a shocking 42 per cent of people said they would save a computer from a fire but only 29 per cent would save their family heirlooms, which are passed down from generation to generation.

MozyHome® is the leading online backup service, which offers a simple and easy-to-use method of ensuring that the content that people keep on their computers is safe. With the same military-grade encryption used by online banks during data transfer, MozyHome offers a secure service to store valuable data ranging from Word and Excel documents, to photos, videos, music and more so that, should a computer crash or get destroyed, or a laptop get stolen, personal files can be retrieved. The days of worrying about backing up data can now be a thing of the past as MozyHome automatically backs up computer data, for only £4.99 per month. Mozy is owned by EMC Corporation.

Your Comments