The Postal Service™ reminds employees and contractors to save and back up vital data daily, especially on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, World Backup Day.
A backup is a secure copy of your vital data, stored separately from your primary network. Backing up files ensures preparedness for cyberattacks, system failures, or other disasters and helps operations resume quickly. Examples of critical data to back up include sensitive and sensitive-enhanced information.
According to Verizon‘s 2025 Data Breach Investigative Report, ransomware attacks accounted for 44 percent of the breaches that were investigated. Backing up your data is the best option to recover from a ransomware attack.
Cybersafe at USPS® recommends the following Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency best practices:
n Identify what to back up. Create a list of what data to back up such as financial data, customer records, email, and critical communications.
n Use the 3-2-1 backup rule. Make three copies of important files, store them on two different types of storage media (such as a hard drive and the cloud), and keep one copy stored off-site.
n Secure and test your backups. Use offline copies where possible and regularly test backups to ensure data can be restored. Document your process so recovery steps are clear and repeatable.
Remember, personal files must never be stored on USPS® equipment or devices. Backups of USPS files must only be performed on USPS-issued devices.
For more information about World Backup Day, go to worldbackupday.com/en.
— Corporate Information Security Office,
Chief Information Officer, 3-19-26
