DM Jan-Feb 2024

Dm OPINION: INDUSTRY TRENDS
A finger on the pulse
Nigel Dews, Managing Director, Restore Records Management, shares his thoughts
on the nine key trends he sees emerging in the sector in 2024
From the rise of 'paper-lite' instead of
'paperless', to data protection getting
new teeth - as well as an ongoing
need to reduce costs, of course - 2024
has a lot in store for records
management. We have our finger on the
pulse here and see a range of trends
emerging. So, here are Restore Records
Management's predictions for the
industry in 2024:
1. An extra focus on compliance as GDPR
returns to the spotlight
Data protection regulation is going to be
under the spotlight in 2024 and that
could push the topic back into the
boardrooms of UK businesses.
The European Data Protection Board
(EDPB) will be reviewing data protection
regulation during the first quarter of
2024, focusing on how entities are
implementing the 'right of access'. That's
not an easy issue for businesses which
don't have a full vision of what data they
are storing or where it is held.
We often hear that Subject Access
Requests are time-consuming, costly
and complex for many businesses with
a physical inventory. So, finding a way
to make the process easier will be a
trend - especially as the volume of
requests is increasing.
The focus will be on improving and
speeding up access to inventories,
ensuring all documents are properly
catalogued and having a process in
place. These are the kinds of strategic
targets which often lead
organisations to outsource their
inventory to hit deadlines.
In addition, UK data protection
reforms following Brexit are
expected to move forward in 2024
as the government seeks to
complete its Data Protection and
Digital Information Bill, designed
to mimic, but also tweak
European law.
2 More businesses backing up
data on tape - to mitigate rising
ransomware attacks
As cybercrime continues to rise,
especially ransomware, expect
businesses to consider a return to
physical backups.
One cyber report in December 2023
(https://www.corvusinsurance.com/blog/q
3-ransomware-report) suggested that
ransomware attacks were up 95%
compared to the previous year. The Cyber
Crime Security Breaches Survey of 2023
also reported that 32% of businesses
suffered a cyberattack during the previous
year. The figure was much higher (69%)
for large businesses and for medium sized
businesses (59%).
A good way to mitigate the impact of
such attacks is to regularly backup key
data on tape and add it to your physical
inventory.
3 Reacting to the sheer volume of data
The amount of data being generated is a
big issue for businesses - creating
concerns around storage, access and
security. More than 120 zettabytes of
data are predicted to have been created
in 2023. That's approximately 328.77
million terabytes every single day. This is
partly driven by a desire from businesses
to make more data-driven decisions. To
achieve that, you need to create more
data in the first place - and you need that
data to be accurate and compliant.
We live in a different and more
questioning world, and data is increasingly
seen as the definitive answer to a problem
or an argument. Businesses which can
'prove' or back up their statements and
decisions through data feel stronger for it.
How does that relate to the world of
physical documents?
Well, not all data is digital. Many
businesses seeking 10 years of data to
analyse trends will need to incorporate
physical data into the mix. In fact, even
businesses wanting to analyse recent data
may find a need to look further back than
normal. The pandemic period is not seen
as representative of a 'normal' financial
6 January/February 2024 www.document-manager.com
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