Data Backup Dilemma: Case Studies from the Great East Japan Earthquake

When the Great East Japan Earthquake struck in 2011, several municipalities lost their residential data including backup. Since none of them had ever considered the total loss of data, data backup policy had been paid little attention. In many cases, the backup tapes were simply stored inside the server room, just beside the server rack. Following the calamity, the Japanese national government tried to introduce a data backup system to municipalities using the cloud. The purpose was to secure the safekeeping of backup data. However, municipalities were reluctant to go along with this since overcoming the loss of network connectivity during an earthquake remained foremost in their minds. They prioritize accessibility to data, including that held on tapes, in the event of a future disaster. To overcome this conflict, this paper proposes a hybrid approach for a future data backup policy. Conceptually, a frugal backup system relying on minimal resources should kick in immediately following a disaster while the system as a whole strives to recover the level of robustness necessary for keeping backup data safe.