Without a trace…

The direction for many technology groups is to take advantage of using web-based products. Smaller companies have been doing that for years…my side business especially. The problem occurs, when the company disappears without a trace or worse yet…gets “hacked” (security breach). What is your backup plan.

I have a side non-IT related business. I’m too small and too busy to create my own shopping cart. No need…many exist. In 2002 I selected a company and have been extremely happy with them…until today. I went to log in to run some orders and reports when I see the dreaded message from the register agent (a company that reserves and controls the information aboout your domain name (the part after http://www. and before the .com). The message I’m seeing … domainname.com expired on 8/04/08 and is pending renewal or deletion.

The story is still unfolding.  It could be that the company is switching register agents or it could be that they were hacked or they did go bust. Of course it is Sunday and the technical support line is closed. I will probably not have any details until tomorrow.

If a web-based company you use (shopping cart, credit card processing, sales contact relationship management, training, etc) goes under or their security is breached…what is your Plan B? What is your technology disaster plan? Think about it and write it down somewhere. What happened to me happens to even the biggest of web-based companies. If you have a technology department, ask them to see the Plan B. You should have one for EVERY 3rd party software (web-based included) that you use. You may not get any warning when something out of your control goes bust.