How to Protect Your Synology NAS From Data Loss

Cybersecurity and Threat Intelligence

A Synology NAS can become one of the most important systems within a business. It may contain shared documents, Microsoft 365 backups, virtual machines, surveillance recordings, databases, employee files, and long-term archives. Because so much information is centralized, protecting the NAS requires more than simply installing drives and configuring RAID.

Hardware failure is only one potential cause of data loss. Ransomware, stolen credentials, accidental deletion, incorrect permissions, failed updates, and physical disasters can also affect stored information.

Organizations should therefore protect Synology storage through multiple security and recovery layers. Backups, Btrfs snapshots, secure authentication, network hardening, monitoring, and regular recovery testing work together to reduce the possibility that one incident becomes permanent data loss.

Understand That RAID Is Not a Backup

One of the most dangerous misconceptions about NAS storage is that RAID provides complete data protection.

RAID can maintain availability when certain drives fail, depending on the RAID configuration. However, it does not create an independent copy of the information.

RAID generally cannot protect against:

Accidental file deletion
Ransomware encryption
Malicious administrators
NAS theft
Fire or flooding
Application corruption
Multiple failures beyond RAID tolerance

Organizations should use RAID for storage resilience while maintaining independent backups for actual data protection.

Use Btrfs Snapshots for Fast Recovery

For compatible Synology systems, Btrfs provides useful data-protection capabilities.

Snapshot Replication can preserve point-in-time versions of supported shared folders and other supported workloads. If files are accidentally modified or encrypted, administrators may be able to restore an earlier snapshot instead of recovering an entire backup repository.

Snapshots can be particularly useful for:

Shared business folders
Frequently modified documents
Ransomware recovery
Accidental deletion
Rapid rollback

However, snapshots stored on the same NAS should not be considered the organization’s only backup.

Build a 3-2-1 Backup Strategy

A stronger backup architecture follows the 3-2-1 principle.

Maintain:

Three copies of important information
Two different storage types or systems
At least one copy offsite

For example, a business could maintain production data on its Synology NAS, a secondary backup on another device, and an offsite copy using a remote NAS or cloud storage.

This creates multiple recovery options when one storage layer becomes unavailable.

Use Hyper Backup for Independent Copies

Synology Hyper Backup can protect selected NAS information by sending backups to supported destinations.

Depending on the environment, destinations can include:

External USB storage
Another Synology NAS
Remote servers
Compatible cloud destinations
Synology C2

Organizations should choose backup destinations according to their Recovery Point Objective, Recovery Time Objective, data volume, bandwidth, and business continuity requirements.

For critical information, relying on only one destination creates unnecessary risk.

Protect Business Workloads with Active Backup

Businesses may also use Synology backup technologies to protect workloads beyond files stored directly on the NAS.

Depending on the deployment, Synology solutions can help protect:

Windows endpoints
Physical servers
Virtual machines
Microsoft 365
Google Workspace

Centralizing backups can simplify management, but backup repositories themselves must be protected from unauthorized access and ransomware.

Secure Administrator Accounts

Compromised administrator credentials can give an attacker extensive control over a NAS.

Organizations should avoid using predictable administrator usernames and should disable unnecessary default accounts where appropriate.

Administrative access should follow least-privilege principles.

Good practices include:

Dedicated administrator accounts
Strong unique passwords
Limited administrator membership
Login monitoring
Separate everyday user accounts

Employees who only need access to shared files should not have DSM administrative privileges.

Enable Multi-Factor Authentication

Passwords can be stolen through phishing, credential reuse, malware, and other attacks.

Multi-factor authentication adds another verification step before access is granted.

MFA is particularly important for:

Administrator accounts
Remote access
Sensitive applications
Privileged users

Organizations should combine MFA with strong passwords rather than treating either control as sufficient by itself.

Harden Network Access

A NAS should not expose unnecessary services directly to the public internet.

Administrators should review:

Firewall rules
Open ports
Remote access methods
DSM management access
SSH
FTP services
File-sharing protocols

Services that are not required should be disabled.

Remote administrators can instead use properly secured VPN or private networking architectures where appropriate.

Reducing public exposure significantly decreases the number of services available for attackers to probe.

Configure Auto Block and Account Protection

Repeated login attempts can indicate brute-force attacks.

Synology security features such as Auto Block and account protection can help respond to suspicious authentication attempts.

Administrators should configure these controls according to business requirements while ensuring legitimate employees are not unnecessarily locked out.

Keep DSM and Packages Updated

Unpatched software can leave known vulnerabilities available to attackers.

Organizations should maintain a process for updating:

DSM
Installed packages
Applications
Connected infrastructure
Network devices

Critical security updates should receive appropriate priority.

For business-critical environments, administrators should still review release information and backup status before major system changes.

Protect Against Ransomware

Ransomware protection requires multiple defenses.

A layered approach can combine:

Endpoint security
MFA
Least-privilege permissions
Network segmentation
Snapshots
Independent backups
Offsite copies
Security monitoring

Backup repositories should not be unnecessarily writable from ordinary employee accounts.

Separating production access from backup administration can reduce the possibility that compromised credentials affect every recovery copy.

Monitor NAS Health and Security

Organizations should regularly monitor the NAS rather than waiting for users to report problems.

Important indicators include:

Drive health
Storage pool status
Failed login attempts
Backup failures
Capacity utilization
DSM notifications
Unusual account activity
System logs

Early detection can prevent a manageable storage or security problem from becoming a major outage.

Test Your Backups

A successful backup job does not guarantee successful recovery.

Organizations should periodically restore sample files and, where appropriate, test complete workloads.

Recovery testing should confirm:

Backup integrity
Required credentials
File accessibility
Recovery procedures
Restore performance
Offsite backup availability

Businesses should also document who is responsible for recovery during an emergency.

Protect the Physical NAS

Cybersecurity is only part of NAS protection.

Physical infrastructure should also be considered.

Organizations should protect systems against:

Power failures
Overheating
Unauthorized physical access
Water damage
Theft

UPS protection, environmental monitoring, controlled access, and offsite backups can reduce these risks.

Build Security Around Multiple Layers

There is no single Synology setting that prevents every form of data loss.

Strong protection combines resilient storage, Btrfs snapshots, independent backups, offsite copies, secure authentication, network hardening, system updates, monitoring, and tested recovery procedures.

For cybersecurity assessments, NAS hardening, access controls, and infrastructure security, visit Epis Technology’s Cyber Security services. For layered backup architecture and disaster recovery planning, Epis Technology can also help businesses build recovery environments that protect critical data beyond the production NAS. Protect Synology NAS with comprehensive cyber security solutions

About Epis Technology

Epis Technology helps organizations secure, configure, and protect Synology environments through storage architecture, Synology consultation, cybersecurity assessments, backup implementation, Snapshot Replication, Hyper Backup, remote access hardening, disaster recovery planning, and ongoing managed support. With deep Synology expertise, Epis Technology helps businesses reduce the risks of ransomware, hardware failure, unauthorized access, and accidental data loss while building secure and scalable storage infrastructure for long-term operations.