Many businesses assume that storing data in Microsoft365 means it’s automatically safe.
After all, it’s Microsoft — surely everything’s backed up, right?
Not quite. Microsoft365 is a powerful productivity platform, but out of the box, it’s not a full backup solution.
Relying on its default settings could leave your business exposed to serious risks.
🧩 The Shared Responsibility Model Microsoft protects the platform.
You protect your data. Microsoft ensures uptime, infrastructure security, and basic retention. But when it comes to: Accidental deletions Malicious insiders Ransomware Legal hold requirements Long-term archiving…it’s up to you to have a proper backup strategy.
⏳ The 30-Day Retention Trap Out of the box,
Microsoft365 retains deleted emails and files for just 30 days in most services like Exchange Online and OneDrive. After that, unless you’ve customised retention policies or enabled archiving, your data is gone. This limited retention is fine for short-term mistakes — but it’s not enough for: Long-term compliance Legal discovery Recovering from ransomware Restoring data from ex-employee accounts
🚨 Real Risks You Can’t Ignore Accidental Deletion:
A user deletes a file or email — and it’s gone before anyone notices. Ransomware Attack: Your data is encrypted, and Microsoft’s tools can’t roll back everything. Departing Employees: You lose access to critical files stored in their OneDrive or Teams. Compliance Audits: You need to recover data from months or years ago — but retention policies have expired.
🧠 What a True Backup Solution Offers
A proper Microsoft365 backup solution should provide: Automated daily backups of Exchange, SharePoint, OneDrive, and Teams Granular recovery — restore individual emails, files, or conversations Long-term retention to meet compliance needs Ransomware protection with clean restore points And most importantly: peace of mind.
✅ At IT Life-Raft, we know that having your backup data on the same platform as your production environment introduces risks, especially when you are unable to gain access. Our solution DataRaft365 offers low pricing at £3.99 per user PCM, for 365 days of retention. Your data is stored in our private cloud inside the UK.
Thanks for your time. This is Mark from IT Life-Raft. As always, stay safe online.
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