Over the last few years, a growing number of hosted data backup services have emerged. The idea is simple. Rather than small businesses wrestling with backup software and backup tapes, they upload their data over the Internet to an online backup service.

While such services can be a godsend, there are certain questions you should ask in order to pick the right company to host your data. How secure is the company's offsite storage facility? How long will it take to backup your data, and how fast can they restore it? And, of course, how much will it cost?