Tech Audits: How Often Should They Be Done?

Is the technology your business uses reliable? Can your employees count on it to do their jobs effectively? It’s important that you be able to answer this question with confidence, and the best way to do that is with a thorough technology audit.

What Is a Technology Audit?

A technology audit is a complete assessment of all of your company’s information technology infrastructure, including your hardware, software, and networks. A thorough audit will also include a review of your policies and procedures.

A technology audit should deliver useful insights that let you know whether your company is using your IT assets efficiently. It will also show whether you are storing and processing data securely.

Technology Audit Deliverables

Audits are helpful because they lead to reports that help you better understand risks and opportunities, including:

• Security risks
• Recommendations for improving your IT infrastructure
• Inefficiencies and outdated technology

You can use this information for future planning and addressing any risks that the audit identified.

How Often Should Technology Audits Be Performed?

There is no single answer to this question. Instead, your company should perform different audits at regular intervals. Here is a breakdown that works for many businesses.

Annual Technology Audits

This type is the most thorough audit that you should conduct. You may give this task to your IT team or outsource it to a company that specializes in this work.

This audit will cover individual workstations, servers, cloud storage, data security methods, software and applications, vendors, and peripherals.

Monthly Technology Audits

A monthly audit is a perfect opportunity for you to review how you are using technology to deliver your services and offer customer support. This type of audit should also investigate how effectively your IT team is addressing issues with internal users. This may involve a review of support tickets and surveying users about their experiences with the tech you provide to them.

Weekly Technology Audits

Are your security and backup protocols adequate? A weekly IT audit should report on this. This review should address whether your antivirus software is up to date or not, ensure that other security software is installed and running correctly, and check that your backups are running as they should be.

This technology audit should not be considered complete without a review of:

• Failed updates
• Viruses that were caught and quarantined
• Error messages encountered during system backups

The more you understand your company’s security functions, the better you’ll be at identifying risks.

SEAM and Your Tech Audit Outcomes

Some of your technology audit reporting may reveal issues with your handling of data. Specifically, you may find that you aren’t following proper data disposal and destruction processes. If you discover that you need to make changes to incorporate paper and hard drive shredding into your IT infrastructure, SEAM can assist you.

SEAM offers North Dakota and South Dakota businesses help with their data destruction needs. Feel free to contact us for an assessment or to discuss your needs.