Symantec is launching a software-as-a-service platform aimed at bringing security offerings to small- and medium-sized businesses.

The Cuptertino, Calif.-based security company announced on Tuesday that the Symantec Protection Network -- Online Backup Service has gone into beta testing. It's slated to officially be made available later this year.

"Small and mid-sized businesses, like their enterprise counterparts, are facing new and significant challenges pertaining to data protection," said Doug Chandler, program director at IDC, in a written statement. "Symantec Protection Network -- Online Backup Service leverages the software-as-a-service model to offer sub-enterprise firms a more affordable way to get access to proven data protection technology."

Disasters like Hurricane Katrina have made it clear that companies that keep backup copies of their data in the data center or in company facilities may have a hard time retrieving the data in the event of a major disaster or other problems. That can put a company at risk, both in terms of keep the business operating but also in meeting government regulations.

The Symantec Protection Network-- Online Backup Service aims to address disaster recovery needs. It's designed to let small and medium businesses stay current with advancements in backup and recovery technology, but without the periodic migrations or upgrade processes required with on-site systems.

With this service, the data would be stored off-site in Symantec's data centers.

"Small and mid-sized businesses require the same high levels of service reliability and data security as their enterprise counterparts," said Arthur Wong, senior VP of Symantec Security Response and Managed Security Services, in a written statement. "Until now, however, many small and mid-sized businesses have not had the ability to get the reliable and secure service they need due to cost and lack of resources."