MIS102 Network Disaster Recovery Plan Assessment Answer

Introduction

A network disaster may result in data loss, out-of-budget expenses, reputational damage and reduced productivity. Further, it may result in a loss in revenue and customers. A network disaster recovery plan helps an organization to quickly recover from disasters and ensure minimal or no loss of data and services. It defines processes and procedures to consider in and post-incident situations (Schultz, 2022). It also helps to be aware and engage the resources so that they can make a suitable decision to prevent and recover from specific incidents. The primary purpose of the network disaster recovery plan is to standardize the process of dealing with disaster for faster and more reliable decisions in favour of an organization (Meilani et al., 2019).

Woolworths is one of the largest retail chains in Australia. It has been operating since 1924 and now serves 24 million customers each week. Recently, the organisation has integrated Metro-stores into its core chain and ensure that the overall service time to the customers can be reduced in delivery of products at doorstep (Woolworths, 2023). It is launched to improve penetration in the market and improve the customer base. The organizational network enables the interaction of managers, staff and customers.

The network system may interrupt due for several reasons. The report discusses common network disasters and plans for how the organization can mitigate the effect on routine operations. It will discuss how the organization can pre-plan and post-plan to ensure that the same network disasters are not occurring again.

Network Disaster Recovery Plan

In a modern business environment, the internet and networking are inseparable requirements as these enable the organization to coordinate, communicate and data management at high efficiency compared to traditional communication and data management techniques. The consequences of network disasters may appear as financial loss, reputational damage, service disruptions and poor customer satisfaction (Schultz, 2022). A network disaster recovery plan enables the organization for faster and more reliable decision-making to deal with possible disasters. It is also used to aware the employees so that they can reduce the overall expansion and consequences of the disaster on the network.

Internet Outage

The organization should adopt a corrective and detective approach to identify the problem's origin. For instance, the issue may occur due to broken or unplugged internet cables to network devices. In such incidents, the employees can switch to the local area network to share data and printers without using internet services. If there is a need for internet connections for routine operations, then the employees can temporarily switch to external internet services such as hotspots from personal devices (Wead, 2021). Cables can be checked to see whether they are broken or unplugged. Employees can switch to the service provider to resume internet if the department has access to an additional standby internet line. The IT department can manage disaster management accounts so that network channels can be hired and disasters can be appropriately logged (Dooley, 2017).

Malware Infection

IT staff should take corrective measures as they can isolate the infected system or shut it down to prevent the spread of malware in the network. IT staff can format the computer and initiate data recovery using backup systems and cloud storage. If an anti-malware tool is installed on the computers, the computers can be scanned thoroughly, and malware can be removed while recovering data. If there is no such installed tool, the managers should purchase a license for anti-virus tools and install and update them to their latest virus definitions. Further, security patches are a significant source of malware infection (Ransomware.org, 2023). IT staff should ensure that operating systems are upgraded and configured for automatic updates. Systems must be checked for user and application behaviours. As a preventive measure, the organization should ensure no legal consequences and that customer data is protected through qualified personnel.

Hardware Failure and Communication Protocol Stacks

There may be no local area network for three reasons: unplugged cable, broken fibre cable and problems with the network switch. This problem should be diagnosed using a detective approach, but a secure wireless connection can be preferred to continue the services. If a server or workstation controls the local area network, it should be checked for issues such as inadequate configuration, compatibility with other hardware components and failures. Restart, resetting or replace of defective devices such as non-functioning network switches can help to regain quick access to network services (Meilani et al., 2019). Besides these, firewall configuration should be accessed for access and permissions to local area networking.

Internet connection issues in the portion of the network

Staff can switch to a wired or wireless network and redirect the traffic in the network. A detective approach can help to identify defective cables and devices for quicker recovery. There is a high possibility that the particular cable or device is not working correctly. Still, there may be issues in the configuration to route the data packets in some instances. Backup is important because it can enable access to data using other network systems, especially when an incident is because by the permanent failure of network devices and the impact of cyberattacks (Jacobs, 2022). Power supply issues, configuration issues and the performance of devices in the network are required to check.

Power Outage

Staff should switch quickly to alternative power sources, such as inverters and generators, to prevent damage to data, applications and systems. Rugged UPS can be used to have an alternative power supply for the next six to ten hours. In normal cases, the organization should identify and replace defective UPS systems so that power supply can be ensured in such conditions (DPS, 2023). The size and capabilities of the power source depend on several dependent devices and requirements in the organization.

Natural disasters

An alternative working site can be managed so staff members can use the computing resources and network system to regain access to data stored on the cloud. Such backup sites are useful to ensure continuity when the primary site has some impact from natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes and fires. In other cases, the organization can store and manage the data and applications on the cloud so that there is minimum loss. For instance, a software-as-a-service model can help to reduce the impact of natural disasters.

Password security breach

Such disasters can be identified by complaints of legitimate users and unusual activities of attackers in a network system. Once the security breach is reported, it must be identified using relevant tools and techniques and all the users should be warned if they may get impacted. The organization can suspend the accounts that may be causing the issue or may receive the impact. Further, such accounts can be enforced for password changes immediately (Densham, 2015). A combination of textual and two-factor authentication mechanisms can help to improve the security of applications and systems. Similarly, biometric authentication is critical to improving security. A password security breach can be identified if the user is login outside the defined schedule and unusual activities are performed by users through the account.

Precautions and Post-Incident Planning

The organization can use power backup systems, wireless network systems as alternative internet channels, spare network devices, two-factor authentication, encryption, backup services, anti-malware applications, firewall system and cloud storage as major precautions to ensure similar network disasters are not occurring again. Asides from these, IT staff, can provide training and development programs to employees so that they can understand the security and safety measures for the systems and services (Rao & Akuli, 2015). Network intrusion detection and prevention systems can be installed along with a firewall system to ensure no unauthorized traffic in the network. Regular backup and adequate hardware and software security measures are important to ensure data availability.

In post-incident planning, the employees should report the incident to the IT staff. The disaster-related data should be documented and processed to assess the impact on the network, data availability and services. Affected network systems can be isolated and re-included in the network after suitable treatments. Identified lessons and recommendations can be updated in organizational documents and communicated to employees to prevent further expansion of the disaster.

Anticipation of Potential Questions

The organizational stakeholders may have the following major questions:

1. What are applicable governmental regulations on network disasters and their recovery process?
2. Which data is on priority over the other data, and what are the major backup and security mechanisms for such data?
3. If there is a need for changes in infrastructure and skills of resources, what is the estimated cost and benefit?
4. What are major network devices that ensure performance and availability, and how can we safeguard such devices against failures?

Network Topology Diagram

The organization has a presence in many cities, and it is assumed that each site has a manageable local area network. The presented topology shows the most important network components, along with their contributions to organizational communication and data-sharing services.

Figure 1: Connecting various cities where the business has offices

Figure 2: Implementing demilitarized zone for extended security

References

Densham, B. (2015). Three cyber-security strategies to mitigate the impact of a data breach. Network Security, 2015(1), 5-8. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1353485815700073

Woolworths, (2023). About Woolworths Metro Stores. Retrieved from: https://www.woolworths.com.au/shop/discover/metro. Accessed On: 05 April 2023.

Dooley, K., (2017). The New DR: What To Do When the Internet Is Down. Retrieved from: https://www.auvik.com/franklyit/blog/new-dr-disaster-recovery-internet-down/. Accessed On: 05 April, 2023.

DPS, (2023). Power Outages Cause Long-Term Damage to Your Business. Retrieved from: https://www.dpstele.com/network-monitoring/outage/index.php. Accessed On: 05 April, 2023.

Jacobs, D. (2022). 9 most common network issues and how to solve them. Retrieved from: https://www.techtarget.com/searchnetworking/answer/What-are-the-3-most-common-network-issues-to-troubleshoot. Accessed On: 05 April, 2023.

Meilani, D., Arief, I., & Habibitullah, M. (2019, December). Designing disaster recovery plan of data system for university. In IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering (Vol. 697, No. 1, p. 012028). IOP Publishing. https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1757-899X/697/1/012028/pdf

Ransomware.org, (2023). Creating Disaster Recovery and Incident Response Plans. Retrieved from: https://ransomware.org/how-to-prevent-ransomware/creating-disaster-recovery-and-incident-response-plans/. Accessed On: 05 April, 2023.

Rao, J. D. P., & Akuli, R. K. (2015). A Brief Study on Measures to Improve Cyber Network Security. International Journal of Computer Applications, 975, 8887. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Dr-J-Durga-Rao/publication/290797822_A_Brief_Study_on_Measures_to_Improve_Cyber_Network_Security/links/569ba53708aea1476954374e/A-Brief-Study-on-Measures-to-Improve-Cyber-Network-Security.pdf

Schultz, B. (2022). Network disaster recovery plan. Retrieved from: https://www.comparitech.com/net-admin/network-disaster-recovery/. Accessed On: 05 April, 2023.

Wead, R., (2021). Internet Outages & Your Business, No. 2: A disaster recovery plan is critical for your business’ long term success. Retrieved from: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/internet-outages-your-business-2-disaster-recovery-plan-rodney-wead/. Accessed On: 05 April, 2023.

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