Updated: January 27, 2026
Organizations of all sizes are rethinking data protection as ransomware, cloud growth, and hybrid learning to reshape how information is stored and accessed. Commvault® Cloud and Commvault Cloud Backup & Recovery help IT teams, students, and educators build cyber resilience with capabilities to unify backup, recovery, and security controls.
This guide highlights the real-world challenges of modern data protection and practical strategies to address them, based on a Resilience Rundown conversation with DataPivot Technologies.
What Is Data Protection in Modern IT?
Data protection brings together technology, processes, and people to keep data available, protected, and recoverable. It includes backup and recovery, long-term retention, ransomware resilience, and regulatory compliance.
Today’s environments require protection across:
- On-premises data centers
- Public and private clouds
- SaaS applications
- Endpoint devices and remote users
A single unprotected dataset can quickly become a weak point during an outage or attack.
The DataPivot Perspective
DataPivot Technologies is a Commvault solution provider focused on enterprise technology: data protection, data security, data storage, SaaS, and cloud infrastructure. The company supports more than 150 customers and has been recognized as a top Commvault provider in the Eastern United States.
Founder and CEO Giles Westie emphasizes that DataPivot is “a customer service company that provides technology solutions.” This approach combines technical expertise with consultative guidance to help customers navigate today’s complex IT landscape.
How Data Protection Has Evolved
Two decades ago, data protection often meant nightly tape backups and occasional disaster recovery tests. Today, four major shifts make protection more complex—and more essential.
- Cloud and SaaS growth
Data now spans multiple clouds and SaaS applications, each with unique requirements and potential protection gaps. Legacy tools were not designed for this level of sprawl. - Always-on services
Students, clinicians, and employees expect systems to be available at all times. Even brief disruptions can interrupt classes, delay operations, or affect revenue. - Ransomware and advanced threats
Attackers increasingly target backup systems alongside production environments. Quickly restoring clean data is now as important as preventing attacks. - Regulatory and privacy requirements
Compliance frameworks require organizations to show they can protect and recover sensitive information and maintain auditable data protection practices. Learn more about Commvault Cloud compliance.
Key Challenges in Modern Data Protection
Challenge 1: Multiple point solutions
Many organizations use separate tools for backup, SaaS protection, archives, and disaster recovery—each with its own console, policies, and reporting. This can lead to:
- Inconsistent protection levels
- Gaps for newer or cloud-native workloads
- Complex incident response
DataPivot and Commvault recommend moving toward a unified platform that provides a single view of backup, recovery, and security posture.
Challenge 2: Ransomware and cyber resilience
Modern ransomware campaigns can:
- Spread laterally across data centers and clouds
- Target or attempt to delete backups
- Disrupt identity and authentication systems
Cyber resilience focuses on continuing operations and restoring critical services after an attack. Core elements include:
- Immutable backups and air-gapped copies
- Early threat and anomaly detection
- Practiced recovery playbooks
Commvault Cloud brings these capabilities together so security and backup teams can work from shared insights.
Challenge 3: Complexity of hybrid environments
Most organizations operate across on-premises infrastructure and multiple clouds. Students and staff may use SaaS applications, personal devices, and campus systems throughout the day.
Common challenges include:
- Inconsistent protection policies
- Limited visibility into SaaS backup status
- Difficulty meeting recovery time objectives (RTOs)
A unified platform helps teams apply policies consistently across all locations.
Challenge 4: Skills and staffing
IT teams often have to manage data protection alongside many other responsibilities. As environments grow, so does operational overhead.
Educational and training resources, such as Commvault’s Readiverse Academy and partner-led workshops, help teams build skills in:
- Backup and recovery design
- Cloud and SaaS data protection
- Ransomware readiness and response
The Role of Commvault and DataPivot
DataPivot collaborates with Commvault to deliver a single platform for data protection and cyber resilience. Together they help customers:
- Consolidate legacy backup tools into Commvault Cloud
- Design architectures that protect data across data centers, clouds, and SaaS
- Implement ransomware-ready solutions with immutable storage
- Run test recoveries and exercises for disaster and cyber events
Commvault Cloud Backup & Recovery delivers policy-driven protection, flexible recovery options, and broad workload coverage. Commvault Cloud’s cyber resilience features help identify risky data, automate recovery workflows, and can help reduce downtime.
Planning for Cyber Resilience
Cyber resilience goes beyond backups. It answers the question: “How quickly can we return to safe operations after a major incident?”
Core elements include:
Prevention
- Hardening backup infrastructure
- Role-based access control and multifactor authentication
- Integration with security operations tools
Preparedness
- Clear runbooks for cyber incidents
- Pre-defined recovery tiers for critical applications
- Regular recovery testing using non-production environments
Recovery
- Fast identification of clean restore points
- Orchestrated recovery of applications, not just VMs
- Communication with stakeholders, students, and customers
DataPivot often walks customers through scenarios that range from simple file restores to disaster or ransomware recovery. This exercise helps align expectations, budget, and technology.
Success Metrics for Data Protection
To know whether a data protection strategy is working, organizations can track metrics such as:
- Downtime reduction: Hours of avoided or reduced outages
- Recovery time: Ability to meet RTOs for critical services
- Backup reliability: Percentage of successful backup jobs
- Ransomware recovery readiness: Number of tested recovery scenarios per year
These metrics help leadership understand the value of investing in resilience.
Key Takeaways for Students and Early-Career IT Professionals
- Think in terms of systems, not just backups. Data protection includes security, identity, storage, and networking.
- Understand that cloud does not automatically equal protection. SaaS data often needs separate protection.
- Recognize that ransomware is a question of “when,” not “if,” and that recovery is a core security discipline.
- Learn how platforms like Commvault Cloud integrate with security tools, cloud providers, and partners to provide end-to-end resilience.
Explore Commvault Cloud and Commvault Cloud Backup & Recovery to see how a unified platform simplifies backup and recovery across hybrid and multi-cloud environments.
Quick Summary
- Data protection now spans on-premises, cloud, and SaaS.
- Ransomware and advanced threats make recovery as important as prevention.
- Multiple point tools increase complexity and risk.
- Commvault Cloud and partners like DataPivot provide a unified platform for backup, recovery, and cyber resilience.
- Success is measured by reduced downtime, faster recovery, and tested ransomware readiness.
FAQ
Q: What is data protection in modern IT?
A: Data protection is the practice of keeping data available, protected, and recoverable across on-premises, cloud, and SaaS environments.
Q: How is cyber resilience different from traditional backups?
A: Cyber resilience focuses on keeping the business running during and after cyberattacks by combining security, backup, and orchestrated recovery.
Q: Why are multiple point backup tools a problem?
A: Multiple tools create coverage gaps, inconsistent policies, and slow incident response because teams must manage many consoles and reports.
Q: How does Commvault Cloud help with ransomware recovery?
A: Commvault Cloud offers immutable backups, threat detection, and automated recovery workflows to restore clean data quickly after an attack.
Q: What role does DataPivot play in data protection projects?
A: DataPivot designs and implements data protection solutions using Commvault technology, helping customers navigate complexity with expert guidance.
Q: Which metrics show that a data protection strategy is working?
A: Key metrics include the potential for minimized downtime, faster recovery times, high backup success rates, and tested ransomware recovery scenarios.
You can learn more about DataPivot on its website or by email sales@datapivottech.com.
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