Whether it’s lava flowing through the streets of Hilo, Hawaii or Storm Alberto flooding the southeastern United States, the dramatic footage of the past week captures more than the devastating power of nature – we’re seeing the loss of homes and businesses. When families and business owners are forced to evacuate, they must quickly decide which physical items to bring with them.

From family pictures to payroll records, a backup can provide critical consolation that not all will be lost, no matter how chaotic and terrifying the disaster.

In the world of information technology, delivering cloud-based services is the next train barreling down the tracks. This ever-expanding, ever-evolving opportunity is moving at a remarkable speed (which is why there are so many aaS acronyms out there).

Even with big players like Amazon, Microsoft, Salesforce.com and Google in the mix, there’s plenty of opportunity for service providers to jump aboard.

Perhaps you are looking to avert a disaster, such as avoiding the ransomware attacks that are expected to hit businesses every 14 seconds by 2019. Or you may be trying to comply with new requirements like the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which takes effect in May.

Whatever the reason, determining the security offered by a cloud service provider has to be a priority for businesses. Certain technologies and certifications are essential for ensuring your data is safe in the cloud.

When the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) comes into effect next month, organizations that handle the personal data of any EU citizens – whether you capture it yourself or process it on behalf of another company – will have to get much more serious about protecting it. That includes building robust defenses to protect against security breaches.

Your GDPR compliance can depend on defending your EU customers’ personal data against ransomware. This Tale of Two Companies infographic explains why.