The 2021 ransomware attack on the WDHB highlighted the vulnerabilities in cybersecurity and the importance of robust defences. Read an expert perspective of how it could have been prevented.
CHALLENGE
As one of New Zealand’s leading ICT systems integrators working with the country’s major universities, district councils and more, Softsource vBridge is at the forefront of protecting New Zealand organisations from rising threats such as ransomware.
In the world of cybercrime, perimeter defences are simply not enough to give organisations peace of mind they’re protected. There’s no silver bullet to keep threat actors out, meaning attention needs to be drawn to how and where data is stored and backed up within organisations. As data is the most valuable asset to any organisation operating in today’s digital economy, its value – and the prize cybercriminals are after – is growing every day.
Softsource vBridge recognised that to enhance its customers’ cybersecurity posture, it needed to create an immutable, untouchable backup copy of their critical data that would be protected from cybercriminals even if they breached their systems. It needed a way to safely store and quickly reinject this data back into the organisation in the event of an attack to eliminate attackers’ top pressure point: downtime.
“When organisations are locked out of their data, they can’t operate, trade, pay staff or process invoices. The costs can spiral into millions of dollars, notwithstanding the long-term customer relationship and reputational damage that can occur,” said John Ward, Customer Experience Manager, Softsource vBridge.
DEPLOYMENT
Softsource vBridge carefully assessed the market for data backup solution providers that could deliver immutable storage, considering both public cloud, hybrid cloud and on-premises solutions.
The company selected Cloudian’s Hyperstore object storage and Object Lock data immutability technology due to its proven ability to protect data from encryption, native S3 API capabilities, scalability, value, and ability to keep data on-premises. This maintains data sovereignty by keeping the data hosted in and only accessible from within New Zealand, helping organisations to meet security and compliance needs and preferences around sensitive data.
Softsource vBridge integrated Cloudian’s technology into its Auckland and Christchurch data centres and built it on secure HPE servers. The solution, known as Indelible Backup, typically employs Veeam’s leading backup, disaster recovery and modern data protection software, with Veeam a key partner to both Softsource vBridge and Cloudian and recently integrating Cloudian’s object storage on its new Data Platform.
BENEFITS
A major New Zealand university, several district councils and other local organisations using AI to power large, geospatial datasets are just some of the New Zealand organisations benefiting from the solution. Customers have peace of mind that their ‘crown jewel’ data assets are protected even in the event of a ransomware attack.
The solution also helps to maintain data sovereignty by keeping data hosted in and only accessible from New Zealand, ensuring organisations can meet security and compliance requirements and preferences around sensitive data. Compliancy is further bolstered by Indelible meeting the stringent ISO 27001 standard, the leading international information security standard.
Most organisations would expect an increase in costs to support enhanced security, but many of Softsource vBridge’s customers are saving money with the absence of ingress and egress charges. These charges are typically associated with pulling data in and out of the cloud and can amount to tens of thousands of dollars per month or more depending on the amount of data in play.
Following the initial deployment, Softsource vBridge has almost filled two petabytes of data, equivalent to about 22,000 4K movies, on Cloudian’s platform, with plans to expand the environment for new and existing customers as the partnership grows.
“Our Cloudian-based service, Indelible Backup, offers the difference between being back online within hours or days instead of weeks or months when the worst happens,” added Ward.
SUPPORTING CYBER INSURANCE COVER
Softsource vBridge and Cloudian’s partnership expansion comes as organisations in New Zealand and around the world find it increasingly difficult to obtain cyber insurance. One report[1] highlighted insurance premiums have risen by over 28 per cent, with underwriters attempting to mitigate cyber claim losses with much stricter underwriting requirements.
Data immutability has become a key factor in Softsource vBridge customers’ ability to secure the cyber insurance they need. Further, a number of Cloudian customers report receiving a discount of up to 15 per cent on cyber insurance because of ‘robust data protection’.
“Cyber insurance is often the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff – if you need to activate it, you’ve already lost in a sense. But it’s something New Zealand organisations require. By partnering with Cloudian, we can help organisations get insurance, and we help them avoid needing to use it,” said Ward.
Speaking about the partnership, Cloudian Asia Pacific & Japan Senior Director James Wright said this kind of technology can solve a considerable risk gap many organisations aren’t aware they have until it’s too late.
“There’s a wider risk here when organisations believe there is a level of separation between the data they use and its backup copy. In reality, backup copies are vulnerable, something they only realise when they’re attacked and both datasets are compromised,” he said.
“We’ve designed this system to provide the level of assurance that New Zealand organisations need. The backups are untouchable and are even protected from rogue actors within the organisation. The backup copies can be the lifeline organisations need when their perimeter defences are taken down, and really that is a ‘when, not if’ consideration.”
In a nutshell:
CHALLENGES
- Cybersecurity threats including ransomware are on the rise in New Zealand, causing companies to rethink how and where they store and backup their data.
- Softsource vBridge needed the ability to create an immutable, untouchable backup copy of their critical data that would be protected from cybercriminals even if they breached their systems.
SOLUTION
- Cloudian Hyperstore object storage and Object Lock data immutability
BENEFITS
- Critical data protected from encryption
- Native S3 API capabilities
- Scalability
- Low TCO
- Data sovereignty
- Cyber insurance support