What is a personal disaster recovery plan?

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Companies have disaster recovery plans for data back-up, storage, and recovery. When thinking about identity fraud and in the aftermath of hurricane Sandy, do we need a personal disaster recovery plan and what would it look like?

Whilst most certificates you can get again there is some personal items and data you cannot get back and a quick document scan stored in a secure way or a picture will save a lot of time later......

Personal data that CAN be recovered but it takes time and a little thought will save you a lot of pain.

  • Certificates for you and your family : Birth, death, marriage, school exams, degree and professional
  • Medical data for you, your family and your pets – #numbers, medication, illnesses, injuries, drugs, reactions, allergies
  • Financial data, bank accounts, credit cards, stocks and shares, insurance (house, car, life), and recent tax returns
  • Loyalty and reward cards
  • Your contacts for friends and family
  • Websites and Passwords

Personal data that CANNOT be recovered and therefore if you do nothing it is lost

  • Family photos and videos from all family members from camera, PC, tablet and mobile phone
  • Portfolio – if you're a writer, designer, artist, or musician, you may wish to add your work to a storage device
  • Technology and software serial numbers
  • Insurance recovery receipts or images of high value for proof of ownership

Backup is such the wrong word for such digital assets