In the era of digital transformation, even cultural institutions – museums and theaters – have to face technological challenges. Warsaw cultural institutions are increasingly bold in using modern technologies, from digital databases and online ticket sales to interactive exhibitions and virtual tours. This progress brings huge benefits for recipients and operational improvements, but at the same time requires a solid IT background and care for cybersecurity. As the National Institute of Museums notes, museums today have to cope new challenges such as IT security and personal data protection . In this article, we look at key issues related to IT infrastructure in cultural institutions – from typical problems to solutions ensuring security and business continuity.
IT challenges of Warsaw museums and theatres
Warsaw museums and theatres, like many cultural institutions in Poland, face a number of challenges in managing their IT infrastructure. Below we present the most important ones:
- Outdated systems and software: Many institutions operate on old hardware and systems that have not been updated for years. Lack of updates means security gaps and the risk of failure. Neglected, unsupported software can become an easy target for viruses or malware attacks. According to EU requirements (NIS2 directive), organizations should regularly update software and systems and implement intrusion detection systems – which shows how crucial it is to modernize infrastructure. Unfortunately, budget constraints of cultural institutions often cause IT investments to be postponed.
- No regular backups: Digital data is an invaluable resource today. – including collection catalogues, archival photos, documentation, as well as information about visitors or viewers (ticket reservations, newsletters, donor data). Despite this, many institutions have not implemented an effective backup system. Estimates indicate that as many as 70% small businesses in Poland do not perform regular backups files, which often results from the mistaken belief that “it won’t happen to us.” Similar unawareness of the risk is present in the cultural sector. Meanwhile, a disk failure or ransomware attack is enough to lose years of digitization work. In 2021, a ransomware attack on the official infrastructure in Krakow led to a loss of access to data and chaos – it turned out that the last working backup copy was from a few days ago, which forced the office to ask citizens to re-submit the documents. The lack of up-to-date backups means a real risk of irreversible data loss and long-term business paralysis.
- Cyberattack Threats: Cultural institutions are not free from hacker attacks – on the contrary, their prestige and recognition make them vulnerable to digital incidents on a larger scale. In recent years, there have been more and more cases of attacks on museums and other public institutions. An example is the attack on the Home Army Museum, where hacker activity paralyzed the museum's website by flooding traffic (DDoS attack). Although no data was stolen in this case, the institution was cut off from contact with the online audience for several days. Another high-profile incident was the ransomware attack in 2024 on the financial system of dozens of French museums (including the Louvre), where the perpetrators threatened disclosing stolen data, demanding a ransom . Such examples show that ransomware, phishing, DDoS or hacking constitute a real threat to museums and theatres. The consequences are not only financial losses, but also a loss of trust from visitors and the reputation of the institution.
- Limited IT staff resources: Most cultural institutions do not have extensive IT departments. Often, all IT matters are the responsibility of a single specialist or even this role is combined with other duties. Such Staff shortage makes it difficult to maintain systems on an ongoing basis, update them regularly and respond to incidents. In small cultural entities, the lack of a full-time IT specialist means that security issues are pushed into the background – usually “as long as everything works, there is no problem”, and backup or monitoring policies are postponed until never. In Warsaw, although larger museums and theatres can count on slightly better financing and access to external services, even they experience a shortage of IT specialists on the market. An additional challenge is distributed infrastructure – e.g. museums with branches or warehouses in different locations, or theaters operating on several stages. Managing a network, servers and devices in multiple locations with limited staff becomes logistically difficult without the support of technology.
Modern server infrastructure is the heart of IT systems also in cultural institutions – however, its maintenance requires professional care and updating.
The above problems can compound each other. Outdated systems are more susceptible to attacks and failures; the lack of backup means that the consequences of an incident are catastrophic; and a modest IT team means slower response to threats. In the realities of Warsaw museums and theaters, with their large scale and prestige, At stake is not only business continuity, but also the protection of cultural heritage and visitor dataBelow we discuss solutions that can prevent these threats or minimize their effects.

Network monitoring – early detection of threats and failures
One of the pillars of securing IT infrastructure is constant monitoring of networks and systems. It involves continuous monitoring of network traffic, server and device activity, and detecting irregularities in real time. Why is it so important? Here are the key reasons:
- Quick identification of security incidents: Proactive monitoring allows you to catch symptoms of an attack or intrusion before they cause serious damage. For example, an intrusion detection system can alert you to unusual network traffic (indicating an attempt to steal data) or to mass requests being sent to the server (which may indicate preparation for DDoS). Early detection of threats and incidents minimizes the risk of financial and image losses – the organization can react faster, cut off the attacker or block malicious activity. As a result, even if an incident occurs, its effects are limited. What's more, monitoring helps meet the regulatory requirements for incident reporting (important, for example, in the context of the Act on the National Cybersecurity System for Public Institutions).
- Preventing downtime and failures: Monitoring covers not only security aspects but also technical condition check infrastructure. Tracking the load on links, servers and applications allows you to detect performance problems before they lead to failure. For example, an alert about the database server disk space filling up quickly allows you to take action (expanding space, archiving old data) before the system stops working. As experts point out, proactive network monitoring helps detect performance errors early and prevents outages and downtime For a museum or theater, this means that the ticketing system will not suddenly crash on the day of the premiere, and the digital exhibition will be available to visitors without disruption.
- Increased transparency and control: By having a central view of the entire infrastructure, IT departments (or an external service provider) are able to better understand what's happening online institutions. Monitoring provides logs and reports – e.g. information on which devices require updating, what actions were performed on servers, when errors occurred. Such knowledge makes it easier to maintain order in configuration and solve problems faster. In practice, this means, among others, continuity of systems operation, greater employee productivity (they do not have to wait for the fault to be fixed) and satisfaction of guests using online services.
- Data leak protection: In cultural institutions, personal data (of employees, guests, event participants) and digitized collections should be particularly protected. Network monitoring can detect suspicious data transfers to the outside world or unusual application behavior, which can be a sign of a break-in and attempted information theft. Early detection of such an incident allows the infected station or server to be disconnected before a mass leak occurs. For Warsaw institutions – often with extensive user databases – this is a matter of both reputation and legal compliance (e.g. GDPR imposes severe penalties for loss of personal data).
To sum up, Network monitoring is the digital guardian of infrastructure. It works 24/7, constantly monitoring to alert the appropriate people in case of problems. The investment in such a solution pays off in the form of fewer incidents, shorter downtimes and peaceful sleep for administrators. For Warsaw museums and theaters, which due to their reputation may become a target of attack, monitoring is simply indispensable - it allows outsmart cyber threats before they do damage.
Backup automation – protecting your invaluable data
Regular Backups is the basis of data security in every organization, and especially in institutions managing unique digital resources. Let's imagine many years of digitization of museum collections - document scans, photographs of exhibits, recordings of performances - lost overnight due to a server failure or encrypted by ransomware. To prevent such tragedies, a reliable backup system is needed. The key elements of an effective backup strategy are: regularity, automation and redundancy.
Automation of the backup process is especially important where there is a shortage of workers. Manual copying by employees can be unreliable – it is easy to make a mistake or neglect, e.g. someone forgets to copy the latest files or puts the backup off “until tomorrow”. In turn, automated backup tasks can run at set intervals (e.g. every night) and save data to a selected location . Thanks to this, the institution is sure that copies are being created regularly and without the need for manual intervention. Modern solutions even allow you to check the integrity of copies (whether they can be restored), send alerts in the event of an error, and encrypt backups for greater security.
It is worth implementing the principle 3-2-1, which experts recommend: maintain at least 3 copies of data, on 2 different media, of which 1 off-site (e.g. in the cloud or at another location). In the case of a museum, this could mean that in addition to the data on the main server, a copy is made to a local NAS server every night and an encrypted copy sent to the cloud storage in parallel. Such diversification protects against various scenarios – from disk failure, through human error (deleting files), to random events at the headquarters (fire, flooding, equipment theft).
You should also test playback data from backups. A backup that has never been verified can give a false sense of security – only in a crisis situation does it turn out that, for example, files are corrupted or some key directories are missing. Automatic systems can periodically run test recovery on a virtual machine, which reassures administrators that the copies are complete and ready to use.
Every cultural institution will benefit from a well-implemented backup: the failure ceases to be a disaster and becomes a minor incident, after which the data can be quickly restored and work can continue. It also has a financial dimension – data loss can be much more expensive than the backup itself. Let us recall that Data recovery after a failure or attack costs at least several thousand zlotys, not counting losses due to downtime. In comparison, a basic automatic backup system is a fraction of that amount and can save weeks of downtime and priceless nerves. To sum up, Backup automation is an investment in a digital “insurance policy” – protects the heritage and continuity of museums and theatres.
Remote IT system administration – efficiency with limited staff
With limited staff and often scattered infrastructure, it comes to the rescue remote IT administration. This is a model in which IT specialists manage the organization's systems remotely - connecting via the Internet to servers, computers or network devices. Such services can be provided by dedicated employees of the institution or an external IT company. For Warsaw cultural institutions, where the pace of operation is high and budgets are tight, remote IT administrator is often the optimal solution in many respects:
- Quick response and 24/7 support: Remote access means that in the event of a problem, the IT specialist does not have to physically appear on site. They can immediately log into the server or workstation to diagnose and fix the fault. For a theatre during a performance or a museum during an important opening, such a quick reaction can be beneficial - for example, when the ticket system fails, the specialist can immediately restore the service from the backup or switch to the backup system. Remote administration often goes hand in hand with monitoring: the administrator receives an alert about the failure and can take action before staff even reports a problem. In addition, many companies offering remote services provide on-call shifts outside standard hours, which is of great importance for cultural institutions (organizing events in the evenings and on weekends).
- Cost savings and flexibility: Maintaining a full-time IT team can be beyond the reach of smaller facilities. Using an external "remote IT specialist" allows you to maintain and develop your infrastructure without creating new jobs and large investments . You usually pay a subscription fee for care or for the specialist's hours, which is cheaper than permanent employment. Importantly, the service is scalable - you can get support tailored to your current needs. For example, during the period of intensive preparations for a large exhibition, the museum can order additional admin shifts, and during quieter times limit itself to the basic package. Remote IT support is especially useful for small and medium-sized organizations without an internal IT department. , because it provides access to experts at a level comparable to large institutions.
- Access to specialist knowledge: Virtually every expert can work remotely, regardless of location. Thanks to this, the institution gains the opportunity to consult and be served by high-class professionals who, for example, specialize in security, backups or networks, and they would not be available exclusively in one museum or theater. An external IT company that remotely services many entities also has extensive experience – it has seen various failure and attack scenarios, which allows it to better prevent problems. In other words, we receive a whole range of expert knowledge “on demand”, without having to build such a team yourself.
- Constant supervision and maintenance of infrastructure: Remote administration is not only about responding to failures, but also ongoing maintenance of systems in good condition. Administrators can regularly install updates, configure security, and optimize performance—all remotely, often outside of office hours so as not to disrupt the institution’s operations. This ensures that the museum or theater always has up-to-date software (which reduces the risk of attack) and that systems operate efficiently. Employees can focus on their tasks, while the administrator takes care of the stability of the infrastructure in the background . What's more, you can remotely take care of all the locations of the institution - e.g. museum branches in different parts of the city - without wasting time on commuting. For a distributed infrastructure, this is a great improvement.
To sum up, remote IT administration is a way to ensure that even with modest staff resources professional IT service at a high level. Warsaw cultural institutions can now use local IT companies offering constant remote care – taking advantage of the rich IT services market in the capital. As a result, a museum or theatre gains certainty that its infrastructure is under constant supervision, and if necessary, professional help is within reach (or rather – one VPN connection). All this translates into a lower risk of serious failures, greater data security and peace of mind of the people managing the institution.
Summary and Call to Action
Technological progress cannot be stopped – the cultural sector must also adapt to it. Warsaw museums and theatres, wanting to remain modern and attractive to the public, invest in the digitization of collections, interactive exhibitions, online sales and social media. However, technology brings benefits only when it goes hand in hand with reliability and security. IT infrastructure challenges – from outdated systems, through lack of backups, to cyber threats – are a real threat to the continuity of cultural institutions. Fortunately, there are solutions available: network monitoring, automatic backups, remote administration, and other measures discussed above can minimize the risk and protect both valuable data and the image of the facility.
It is not worth waiting for an incident to happen. Every day of delay is a gamble with a potential attack or failure. The sooner a museum or theater implements an IT security policy, the greater the chance that it will avoid a costly interruption in operations or the loss of invaluable digital resources. We encourage all cultural institutions to assess their technological readiness. Are your systems up to date? Do you have daily data backups? Is the network monitored for threats? If the answer to any of these questions is “no” or “I don’t know” – that’s a signal to take action.
How do we approach the topic?
Professional support can make this path much easier. DataOne specializes in implementing comprehensive IT solutions for cultural institutions. We have helped many museums and theaters secure their infrastructure, automate backups and improve system management. Contact us to schedule a free consultation – we will analyze the needs of your institution and propose effective solutions tailored to your capabilities. Take care of the technological future of your museum or theatre today – contact DataOne and turn digital challenges into your success!