Legal & professional services
Backup for translation agencies, from source files to memories
Mindtime backs up the mail, file shares, translation servers and laptops where source documents and translation memories live, keeping immutable copies in its own data centres in the Netherlands and Germany plus one copy that is air-gapped.
In Dutch, German or English.
- NL · DEStored only in our own Tier III data centres in the Netherlands and Germany
- ImmutableObject Lock storage plus an air-gapped copy; every backup job is checked
- ISO 27001 · NEN 7510Audited security, with a data processing agreement in every contract
- NL · DE · ENSupport from people, no offshore call centres or chatbots
In short
Translation agencies need secure backups because their source files are often confidential and their translation memories hold years of work that cannot be recreated. Mindtime keeps immutable copies of mail, project folders, translation servers and laptops in its own Tier III data centres in the Netherlands and Germany, and checks every backup job.
What's at stake
The data translation agencies can't afford to lose
Translation memories and termbases
A memory built over years of client work is what makes your agency consistent and fast. If it is corrupted or deleted, every new job for that client starts from scratch.
Confidential source documents
Contracts, medical reports, court papers and civil status documents arrive for translation. Losing them is inconvenient; leaking them is a breach your client will not forget.
Sworn translations and certified copies
Sworn translations carry your translator's signature and stamp. You need the delivered version on record when a client or authority questions it later.
Rules and obligations
What the rules ask of translation agencies
Summarised from the sources listed at the bottom of this page. This is general information, not legal advice.
Sworn translators are bound to secrecy
The code of conduct for sworn translators under the Wbtv, in force since 1 February 2024, says the translator has a duty of confidentiality about information received while preparing and carrying out a translation, unless the law requires disclosure. [1]
Destroy confidential data as agreed
The same code says sworn translators destroy confidential data immediately after the assignment, in line with the arrangements made about it. Backup retention therefore has to match what you agreed with the client. [1]
Register managed for the Minister of Justice
Bureau Wbtv keeps the Register of sworn interpreters and translators (Rbtv) on behalf of the Minister of Justice and Security, and handles registrations, quality requirements and complaints. [2]
Data breach reporting
Documents for translation often contain personal data. If ransomware or theft affects them, the controller has to report the breach to the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens within 72 hours. [3]
Translation is not a NIS2 sector
Language services do not appear in the sector list of the Cyberbeveiligingswet, which applies in the Netherlands from 15 August 2026. Clients that are in scope may still ask about your security as part of their supply chain. [4]
When it goes wrong
A corrupted memory file
Illustrative example: after a power cut, the shared translation memory for an agency's largest legal client will no longer open. The copy on the file server turns out to be synced from the damaged version. The agency restores the memory from an earlier Mindtime backup taken before the outage, checked when it ran. Translators lose only the segments added since that backup, and the project continues.
How Mindtime protects it
Backup for translation agencies, workload by workload
- Laptop and endpoint backupTranslators work on local project packages that are often not synced anywhere.
- NAS backupClient folders and exported memories commonly sit on a single office NAS.
- Microsoft 365 backupMail is where source documents arrive and deliveries are recorded.
- Google Workspace backupAgencies working in Gmail and Drive need a copy outside Google's own trash.
The software you use, and what we protect around it
| Trados Studio and Trados Enterprise | RWS's CAT tools, with translation memories and termbases. If project files and memories sit on in-house PCs or a file share, Mindtime backs those up; for Trados Enterprise in the cloud, check RWS's export and retention terms. |
|---|---|
| memoQ | Available as desktop software and as memoQ TMS on a server or in the cloud. If you run memoQ TMS on your own server, Mindtime backs up that server off-site. |
| Microsoft 365 | Source files usually arrive by mail and deliveries go out the same way. Mindtime keeps copies of mailboxes and OneDrive outside Microsoft's environment. |
| Project folders on a NAS | Many agencies keep source and target files per client on a Synology or QNAP NAS. Mindtime backs that NAS up to its own data centres. |
| Translators' laptops | In-house translators often work offline on local copies. Mindtime backs up Windows, macOS and Linux laptops. |
Before you switch
What translation agencies ask us first
Our CAT tool already keeps backup copies of memories.
Copies made by the tool usually sit on the same disk or server as the original, so they share its fate in a disk failure or ransomware attack. Mindtime adds an off-site, immutable copy and an air-gapped one.
Our clients demand that we delete their files after delivery.
Then set a backup retention period that fits those agreements and document it. Mindtime signs a data processing agreement with every contract, so you can explain to clients exactly where copies are kept and by whom.
We are a small agency with freelancers everywhere.
Freelancers manage their own equipment, but your in-house mail, project folders and memories are yours to protect. Mindtime handles the checking and monitoring, and its support staff speak Dutch, German and English.
FAQ
Questions about backup for translation agencies
How do we back up translation memories safely?
Back up the server or folder where the memories are stored, not only the exports. Mindtime keeps immutable copies, so a corrupted or encrypted memory can be replaced by an earlier, intact version. Every backup job is checked, which tells you the copy completed rather than assuming it did.
Where are our clients' documents stored once backed up?
In two places only: Mindtime's own Tier III data centres, one set in the Netherlands and one in Germany. Data is encrypted in transit with AES-256, admin actions need MFA, and Mindtime is audited against ISO 27001 and NEN 7510. Every contract includes a data processing agreement you can show to clients.
What if ransomware encrypts our project server?
You restore from a copy the attacker could not alter. Mindtime stores backups with Object Lock and keeps an air-gapped copy. Backups are scanned for malware, and recovery can take place in an isolated environment before the data goes back into production.
Can we see how it works first?
Yes. Book a free 15-minute demo to see a restore of a folder or mailbox. Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace backup can also be tried for 7 days without charge, which is a quick way to test with your own data.
See it with your own data
Book a 15-minute demo
We show you a backup and a restore, and answer your questions in Dutch, German or English. No offshore call centres, no chatbots.