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Mention PC backup to most users, and they'll immediately think in terms of network storage backup technology or, if they're using a small network/standalone setup, tape/cassette storage. Zip and Jaz storage cartridge systems are increasingly being used by standalone PC users, but local site backup storage is frowned upon by business continuity experts. And it's not difficult to see why - unless backup data is kept in a fireproof safe, there's a good chance that if a physical disaster trashes a computer system, then the backup storage media will be damaged in some way.

Online backup services have been around since the 1960s, when financial institutions started piping backup data to offsite storage sites, using leased lines normally used to carry voice and data communications. Of course, the Internet has changed all that, opening the way for even dialup modem users to back up their data online. In the late 1990s, as an example, online file storage services were springing up, many of which financed their operations with advertising revenue. After the dot-com bubble burst a year ago, however, online backup services went through a shakedown period and, in the UK at least, only a few services survive.

Premises are simple enough - individual users pay somewhere in the region of £15 a month for as much storage as they need, with discounts often available for corporate users. And one company runs the iRoam web-based file access service available for a modest extra fee.

PC-OP.COM, based near Manchester in the UK, is offering a similar type of service, but on a different tariff basis. In return for a reduced set of fees compared to the offsite storage sites, it allows online backup up to a certain ceiling. The starting price point is £60 a year - for which users get storage facilities for up a gigabyte of data. Other pricing deals come in at £280 a year for up to 5Gb and £480 for 10Gb of data storage. This might sound a little stingy, but there's an important difference between PC-OP. COM's service and that of the alternative offsite storage sites - BeITsecure stores the incremental backup image files for up to 90 backup sessions, compared to a leading competitor's 20 backup sessions.

In the case of a user backing up his/her data online every day, this allows users to restore an image of their computer files that is up to 90 days old - handy if a system error has been progressively trashing your data over several weeks. From an audit perspective, this feature is very important, since it means IT managers and other interested staff can restore an image of the relevant files tagged for backup - or even an entire PC's data files - up to 90 backups previously. It also means that BeITsecure's backup servers actually store significantly more data than the annual fee requires them to. On a busy office PC server, for example, even though a user may pay only the basic £60 a year administration fee, the beITsecure service might store 10Gb of data or more.

The beITsecure service launched in early 2001, since when it has had only limited publicity. Despite this, the company claims subscribers from around the world, even as far afield as India. It's clear that PC-OP.COM has looked closely at what its competition - in the UK and a number of US firms - already offer and has pitched its service accordingly. Even though the service is cheaper, it offers more facilities in certain areas (e.g. 4.5 times the backup file storage of Netstore) and less in other areas, such as opting for a premium rate phone line for user support or, if users wish, via email at no charge.

The installation process is slicker than others too. Users download the main 5Mb executable from the firm's web site and request a signup ID and password. PC-OP.COM used to offer a trial service for prospective users, but was overwhelmed by freeloaders. This means that you have to signup for service and start paying immediately - other similar products offer users 30-day trial facilities. On signup, new users are emailed a 500Kb installation self-executing help file, which steps users through the installation and setup process. During the setup procedure, users can select what encryption system they want to use for their backup uploads - Blowfish, triple-DES or DES - and, optionally, the Fastbit compression ratio they wish to use.

Unlike competitors, which compress files on-the-fly during the backup process, beITsecure compresses its files before the backup process actually starts. Users can select what compression ratios they wish to use; the higher the compression, the lower the rate at which they burn up their maximum storage levels, although the time it takes to compress the files increases progressively.

The software is also multilingual, supporting English, Dutch and German. This could be useful for European users. We also liked the option of selecting an encryption password or not. Less experienced users may find this easier, although it does mean that someone stealing a user's PC could restore all their data to a clone machine with relative ease. Disassembling the program code reveals that beITsecure's programmers have used C++ as their primary programming environment. And, under 32-bit Windows, this makes for fast execution.

Overall, we were impressed with beITsecure's installation routines and user interfaces. The program does what the company claims and the service (during our review) appeared to work well. Although PC-OP.COM has only been around since the mid-1990s, its early days have been spent providing backup systems and software for enterprise level users. The beITsecure branded service was launched by the firm at the start of 2001, pitching its backup service (with twin-site mirrored facilities) at a different audience from potential competitors. This means that the BeITsecure service is lower down on the development timescale, and, while its standard service does not have the frills that others may have, it also costs around 40 per cent less than other similar back up services. True, there are limits on data storage, but, as a fan of Easyjet, Ryanair and other budget airlines (you can spot the ex-accountant at work, can't you?) we liked beITsecure's approach and pricing.

Corporates will undoubtedly be attracted to the slicker range of services that certain other providers may offer, but if you're a home or small business user wanting a simple no-frills online backup service at a budget cost, beITsecure wins hands down.

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