In association with Logicalis Solutions
Developing a resilient cyber-security strategy has never been more vital than in today’s world. As the volume of attacks has increased significantly throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, many businesses have questioned how they could further protect themselves by strengthening their security approach.
“People have been working from less secure environments in their homes, or using their personal devices for work,” says John Bailey, enterprise division sales manager at Logicalis Solutions. “We’re more vulnerable now than ever.”
Sophisticated attacks
Coupled with that vulnerability is a host of new threats: “The sophistication of attacks has grown. We’re seeing multiple vectors of attack that didn’t exist previously.”
In this increasingly volatile environment, it is not a question of if you will be attacked, but when. Managing client’s expectations is part of Bailey’s job at Logicalis Solutions. “It’s not a case of prevention, because you will be attacked,” says Bailey. “There’s no company out there that hasn’t been breached. Instead, what’s more important is how badly they’ve been breached, whether they know they’ve been breached, and how they responded to the breach.”
Against the clock
When a breach does occur, the biggest danger is time: “It’s like a stroke,” explains Bailey, “if you’re slow to detect, the more damage that will be done. Potential for recovery reduces with time. The longer you wait to act, the more likely the attacker has choked off any recovery capability you have within your internal defences.”
“Once a breach is identified, we can act,” says Bailey. “Sometimes, it can be automatically remediated, sometimes it requires a human being to intervene.”
“At Logicalis Solutions, we try to watermark every touch point, every access point, every process point – from the end point, through to the network, to the design of the storage, the servers, the compute – so that each element is pervasively secured.”
It’s a tall order, and not a task that many companies want to take on themselves. “Getting us in early to assess and plan your watermark strategy avoids having to pick up the pieces if something unforeseen happens and this gives our customers real peace of mind. They know that we’ve planned for this, and we’ll act on that plan together when that attack occurs.”
Human error
When it comes to enhancing security however, it is not just a technical issue. “There’s a human element that can’t be solved using technology alone. The weakest link in the chain is the biological being that’s sitting at the keyboard and the privileges they possess as Users or Administrators.
“At Logicalis Solutions, we engage with our customers in the education process around privileged access management, audibility and personal accountability. We provide them with the educational tools they need. Whether they’re IT people or not, they then have a full understanding of the potential threats they’re facing, what red flags to look out for, and what processes to follow.”
Quantum computing
There’s always a new threat looming on the horizon. “It’s a constant race for organisations,” says Bailey. “Take quantum computing, for instance. It is going to make today’s compute processors look like matchsticks in a forest of redwoods. The capability of today’s processing machines is minuscule compared to what’s coming. And what does that mean for organisations? It means you might think you’re secure with all your varied encryption barriers today, but you won’t be in this new world with Tsunami levels of compute power coming to attack you. The next generation of threat or Qubit war where any levels of encryption can be hacked is coming. We are still learning how to defend against this, but it will likely be the biggest area of IT investment needed in the next decade as conventional defence approaches will need to be rapidly replaced with new solutions that, as of yet, don’t exist. One of the ways that Logicalis Solutions can now help is with Quantum Safe from IBM, which aims to mitigate this risk.”
IBM partnership
Cyber resilience best practices, advanced technologies and expertise can help customers defend themselves against risk, financial impact and reputational damage. Through its IBM partnership, Logicalis Solutions provides its customers with the applications, configurations and solutions needed to create a robust end-to-end engagement from design, to build, to implementation. IBM’s cyber resilience services can help protects business-critical applications and data and can accelerate recovery from data breach or similar disruption.
“You’re never going to cover every angle,” Bailey continues. “An attacker will find a route to compromise. What we can do its try to limit the damage done once they’re inside by trapping them in a caged area of limited value. But if they decide to move on to someone else because your defences are taking too long to breach, then that is certainly ok to.”
Discover how DRaaS can help you reach your business and technology potential. Book a 30-minute, no-cost strategy session with one of our IBM experts via email: ibm@ie.logicalis.com
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