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31 January 2025

R17.4: Viper. More Control. More Resilience.

Predatar R17.4: Viper is here, bringing even greater control over recovery testing, automation, and visibility. This is our fifth Viper release, with two more scheduled before we move to R18: Black Widow where something big is coming. But first, let’s talk about what’s new.

Take Control of Recovery Readiness

Recovery testing isn’t just a box-ticking exercise, it’s quickly become the foundation of cyber resilience. That’s why we’ve enhanced our data collection routines for Veeam & Rubrik to ensure the Recovery Risk Report and Aurora AI give end users deeper insights and more granular control over recovery testing and anomaly detection. Now, you can see exactly where risks lie before they become problems.

Smarter, Seamless Test Automation

Setting up recovery tests across multiple platforms can be a headache. In R17.4: Viper, newly added test schedules now automatically push to Veeam, IBM SPP, Rubrik, and Cohesity, making it easier to ensure tests are always running as planned. Less manual work, fewer missed tests, more confidence in recoverability.

Better Visibility Into CleanRoom Recovery

When something goes wrong in recovery, you need answers fast. We’ve introduced enhanced activity logging for CleanRoom tasks, giving users the ability to track progress and drill into failures in real-time. That means faster root cause analysis and quicker resolution when you need it most.

With two more Viper releases to go, we’re not slowing down. And with R18: Black Widow, we’re planning something big. Stay tuned and check out the full details of R17.4 here.

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03 January 2025

Predatar R17.3: AIX support has arrived!

Predatar never stops evolving. Over the past 18 months the platform has become truly vendor-agnostic with support for many of the biggest backup and storage solutions on the market. Our roadmap is driven by the changing needs of our customers and the days of businesses relying on a single vendor for backup and recovery are fading fast. As organisations adopt a broad range of solutions to address their challenges, managing and securing data across multiple systems has become more complex than ever.

Predatar has embraced this shift, evolving to give businesses a single, unified view of their recoverability and cyber resilience. Through AI-powered analysis, automated recovery testing, and deep malware scanning of backups, we’ve provided tools that not only simplify this complexity but help organisations continuously verify their readiness to recover from cyber attacks. By listening to our customers and innovating based on their feedback, we’ve ensured Predatar stays ahead in addressing the challenges of a multi-vendor world.

Building on the IBM Legacy

For those that have known about Predatar for a while, you’ll know it all started with IBM. Today our platform supports a wide range of storage vendors, but IBM remains a powerhouse in the data protection space and recent developments show they’re on an exciting journey that complements our own.

Predatar R17.3 introduces a major milestone for IBM users: full support for recovery testing and malware scanning of AIX workloads protected by IBM Storage Protect. This completes our IBM integration story, adding to our existing support for IBM Safe Guarded Copies, Storage Protect Plus, Data Protect, and FlashSystem. For organisations heavily invested in IBM, this means a seamless, end-to-end solution for testing, verifying, and enhancing resilience across critical workloads.

We’re also closely watching IBM’s progress and there’s a lot to be excited about. Over the last 18 months, they’ve accelerated the pace of innovation. From their Data Resiliency Dashboard enhancements and simplified updates to Splunk integration, to governance improvements, IBM is delivering tools that help businesses to strengthen their recovery posture. Features like ransomware detection sensors and MFA security enhancements demonstrate their commitment to evolving in line with their customers’ needs.

Our team is particularly excited by IBM’s developments of their Storage Defender platform. By introducing integrations with other storage vendor’s solutions, it’s clear that IBM is also embracing the reality of a multi-vendor world. This approach aligns with our own mission to help organisations protect and recover their data, no matter how complex their environments become.

A Shared Vision for Resilience

Predatar R17.3: Viper is more than a product release; it’s a testament to our commitment to helping businesses thrive in a multi-vendor world. By continuously enhancing our platform and staying aligned with the latest advancements from partners, we’re ensuring that resilience isn’t just a possibility but a certainty for our customers. Check out R17.3:Viper here.

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20 December 2024

AI in Cybersecurity: Dell Questions the Hype

At this year’s Control24 summit, we heard a range of insightful perspectives on AI in cybersecurity. While IBM‘s Martin Borrett explored the transformative potential of AI, highlighting its dual role as both a tool and a threat, Steve Kenniston from Dell approached the topic from a different angle, focusing on foundational security practices and the importance of a balanced approach. Together, their insights provide a well-rounded look at AI’s role in today’s cybersecurity landscape.

The 90-10 Rule: Focus on What Works

Steve introduced his ’90-10 philosophy’, which proposes that 90 percent of what’s needed to secure your environment can be achieved through fundamental security practices. The remaining 10 percent accounts for newer, specialised approaches like managing prompt injection risks in Gen AI models. But he cautioned against chasing trends without solid basics in place, urging organisations to keep their focus on what has consistently worked:

  1. Reducing Attack Surface: Steve pointed out that roughly 47 percent of breaches exploit weaknesses in basic defences, threats that don’t necessarily need advanced tech to address. Core measures like multi-factor authentication, role-based access, and regular patching are still the first line of defence, effectively countering nearly half of common attacks.
  2. Detection and Response: Building on Martin’s view of AI as transformative, Steve reframed the conversation, reminding us that traditional AI-driven tools, such as MDR (Managed Detection and Response) have provided critical support for years. “AI and ML tools have been built into security solutions for decades,” he noted, emphasising the value of these existing AI solutions in reducing detection and remediation times.
  3. Recovery Readiness: Steve highlighted the importance of robust, regularly practised recovery strategies, sharing that only 37 percent of organisations currently recover from air-gapped storage, leaving a crucial resilience measure underutilised. “Practise, practise, practise,” he urged, likening it to military drills that prepare teams to respond intuitively in a real incident.

AI: A Piece of the Puzzle, Not the Whole Solution

While Martin’s talk showcased AI’s exciting potential, Steve’s approach underscored the importance of integrating AI alongside established security practices. He sees AI as one component within a broader toolkit that supports, rather than replaces, strong cybersecurity hygiene.

Steve advocates balancing automation with oversight – using AI for repetitive tasks, while maintaining human control where it counts.

Building a Unified Strategy

Steve’s advice on viewing cybersecurity as a unified framework added a valuable dimension to the discussion. Rather than compartmentalising attack surface reduction, detection and response, and recovery readiness, he encouraged assessing tools with a holistic perspective. Does a solution reduce the attack surface? Support quick detection and response? Aid recovery? This approach helps organisations avoid tool sprawl and unnecessary complexity.

A Balanced Perspective on AI’s Role

Martin Borrett and Steve Kenniston brought two equally valuable perspectives to Control24. Martin’s talk highlighted the dual nature of AI and its potential to shape the future of security, while Steve reminded us of the enduring importance of strong fundamentals. Together, their messages underscored that a resilient cybersecurity strategy isn’t about choosing between innovation and basics; it’s about finding the balance that fits your organisation.

As Steve put it,

Control24 attendees left with both the excitement of AI’s possibilities and the reassurance that foundational principles remain as relevant as ever.

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05 December 2024

IBM Asks; Are We Really Winning the Cyber AI Race?

At this year’s Control24 summit, we had the pleasure of hosting Martin Borrett, an IBM Distinguished Engineer and IBM Security’s Technical Director for UK&I.

Martin delivered a fascinating keynote, titled ‘AI for Security and Security for AI: Opportunity or Threat?‘ It was one of the highlights of the event, touching on how artificial intelligence is transforming security practices and the tough questions we need to ask as we dive deeper into AI’s capabilities.

Martin’s presentation sparked a new way of thinking about AI in the context of security, and demonstrated that IBM is lifting the curtain on the usual ‘AI will save us’ narrative.

So back to the big question… Is AI an opportunity or a threat? Of course, the reality is that it is both. And that’s exactly the point we’re unpacking in this article.

The Benefits: AI as Our Best Defence?

Martin shared data from IBM’s latest Cost of a Data Breach report, underscoring the financial toll of data breaches, which now sits at an average of nearly $5 million per incident. However, organisations that have invested in AI-driven security saved an impressive $2.2 million on average per breach, thanks to faster detection, triage, and resolution times.

These are big numbers, and they explain why so many companies are increasingly turning to AI to support cyber security operations.

But just as AI helps us manage increasingly sophisticated threats, there’s a flipside we can’t ignore.

The Other Side: Are Cybercriminals Catching Up?

Martin touched on something many are reluctant to discuss. Cyber adversaries are experimenting with AI too. While they haven’t adopted it on a large scale yet, the rise of AI-driven phishing campaigns and retooling efforts are signs that attackers are laying the groundwork for an AI arms race.

Martin said, acknowledging the ongoing battle between defenders and adversaries. “For now, the good guys are slightly ahead. But we can’t be complacent.”

In cybersecurity, assuming that we’ll stay one step ahead can be dangerous. Cybercriminals have always been quick to adopt technology, and as the tools they use become more accessible, we’re likely to see AI-driven attacks gain traction. So, the big question becomes: are we truly ahead, or just a step away from an AI-powered wave of cyber threats?

Securing AI: The Hidden Risk

Martin didn’t just talk about using AI to boost security; he pointed out that AI itself is a new risk. As more organisations adopt generative AI models, the integrity of these systems becomes a critical concern. Martin’s advice? Treat AI like any other sensitive asset and secure it from data poisoning, model theft, and unauthorised manipulation.

“As we think about securing AI, it’s important that we consider how to protect the data, the model, and the usage,” he said.

The problem is, these are vulnerabilities many organisations haven’t even begun to address. As companies roll out AI-powered systems, it’s easy to focus on the benefits without fully understanding the risks.

The Takeaway: A Proactive Stance

Martin’s session at Control24 was a wake-up call. Yes, AI has massive potential to boost security and streamline incident response, but it’s a tool—not a silver bullet. As he so rightly pointed out, “AI is both an opportunity and a threat.” And if we aren’t securing it with the same rigour we apply to other systems, we may be inviting new risks into our defences.

So, as we embrace AI, let’s ask ourselves: are we prepared for the new threats it could bring? Because in this game of cat and mouse, we can’t afford to be reactive. We need to think ahead, secure our models, and always stay one step ahead—not just of the attackers, but of our own assumptions. If you want to find out Predatar is using AI to boost Recovery Assurance contact us here.

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29 November 2024

R17.2: Boosting Backup Resilience & Recovery

Predatar R17.2: Viper brings practical enhancements designed to strengthen resilience and recovery strategies for customers and partners alike. Building on the foundations of R17.0 and R17.1, this release focuses on expanding Predatar’s AI-driven capabilities and refining operational efficiency in key areas.

Two standout features define this release: expanded support for the Recovery Risk Report and significant improvements to our IBM FlashSystem Safeguarded Copy scanning. These enhancements aim to provide deeper insights, faster workflows, and better outcomes for backup environments.

Recovery Risk Report

The Recovery Risk Report has been extended to include Veeam, adding to the existing support for IBM Storage Protect, Storage Protect Plus, and Rubrik. This feature offers AI-powered analysis of backup environments, helping organisations identify risks such as security gaps, workload vulnerabilities, and architectural complexities. With insights delivered in hours, the report provides clear, vendor-neutral recommendations without requiring intrusive consultancy or significant internal resources.

For partners and managed service providers, the Recovery Risk Report is an invaluable tool. It enables fast and accurate benchmarking of client environments, offering actionable insights that help guide improvements in cyber resilience. This streamlined process delivers high value for clients, giving them clarity on their recovery risks at a fraction of the cost of traditional consultancy engagements. Starting at $999, the Recovery Risk Report provides an affordable, impactful way to engage clients while demonstrating expertise and driving deeper partnerships.

FlashSystem Scanning Enhancements

R17.2: Viper also introduces enhanced processes for IBM FlashSystem Safeguarded Copy scanning. These updates focus on streamlining how snapshots are mounted, tested, and securely removed from the CleanRoom environment after use. These improvements reduce complexity and improve efficiency, ensuring that Safeguarded Copy testing is as seamless and effective as possible.

Together, these features reflect our commitment to simplifying resilience. R17.2: Viper gives organisations the tools to uncover hidden risks, improve recovery confidence, and act decisively—all without unnecessary complexity or cost. For partners, it provides a straightforward way to deliver value and open new opportunities in the backup and resilience space.

Check out R17.2: Viper here

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15 November 2024

Dell & Accenture: Recovery Beats Bigger Walls.

Cyber resilience is as much about bouncing back as it is about keeping threats out. At this year’s Control24 summit, Dell and Accenture took a hard stance on an evolving truth: cyber resilience today isn’t about building bigger digital walls but about how fast you can recover when the inevitable happens.

Why Fortifying Defences wont deliver Rapid Recovery

Liz Campbell, Dell’s EMEA Cyber Leader, and Christian, Accenture’s UK & Ireland Cyber Strategy Head, challenged the conventional ‘keep them out’ mindset. With threat actors adapting and even using AI to penetrate defences, they argued, it’s no longer realistic to think your walls will hold forever.

“Building bigger walls is outdated thinking,” Liz explained. “Today’s resilience relies on recovery solutions that go beyond traditional disaster recovery (DR) methods, which are usually too slow and don’t account for the way cyber threats move.”

Christian added that traditional DR was designed for limited, single-location outages, not for the rapid, multi-layered attacks we see today. The result? An over-reliance on old strategies, leaving a significant gap in organisations’ actual readiness. “Without a recovery plan that fits modern threats, many businesses are just replicating infected data across locations—hardly a safeguard in a ransomware attack,” he noted.

Isolated Data Vaults: Safeguarding Your Recovery

Dell has taken proactive steps to close this gap with its air-gapped data vaults. These isolated copies of critical data are untouchable by attackers during an incident, offering businesses a guaranteed path to recovery.

Elizabeth elaborated:

This approach from Dell signals a shift from “keep them out” to “keep your data safe” so recovery becomes more assured. It’s about prioritising continuity, even if the worst happens.

Accenture’s Recovery-First Resilience Strategy

While Dell focuses on the tech, Accenture brings the strategy. Christian described how Accenture helps companies map out a recovery-first approach that considers which services are mission-critical, minimising downtime by prioritising key recovery steps.

“The reality is, no business can withstand being down for days, let alone weeks,” Christian said. “Rapid recovery isn’t just a nice-to-have; it’s essential to staying competitive. Our work with Dell means we can deliver both the infrastructure and the game plan for resilience.” Accenture helps companies outline their top priorities, building recovery plans around what matters most so clients aren’t just reacting but responding with clarity and speed.

Resilience as an Ecosystem: Predatar, Dell, and Accenture

Cyber resilience is never a solo act; it’s about bringing together the right technology and strategic guidance to create an ecosystem of recovery. This is where solutions like Predatar come in, alongside Dell and Accenture’s collaboration. Predatar’s platform focuses on continuous testing and ensuring data is not just backed up but truly recoverable, pushing resilience from theory to practice.

By integrating Dell’s data vaults with Accenture’s strategic planning and Predatar’s continuous recovery assurance, businesses can stay ahead. It’s a holistic approach, where each partner addresses a unique part of the recovery challenge, ensuring companies are prepared not only to respond to an attack but to recover in a way that keeps their operations stable and their reputation intact.

Building a Recovery Assured Cyber Strategy

Liz and Christian’s session at Control24 laid down the essentials for building resilience that goes beyond defences. Here are a few takeaways:

  1. Invest in Isolated Data Vaults: Off-network, air-gapped data storage (such as a vault) ensures you have a clean copy of critical data to prevent malware from spreading.
  2. Adopt a Recovery-First Mindset: The combination of planning and the right technical solutions lets businesses pivot from pure prevention to recovery-first thinking.
  3. Leverage Predatar for Assurance: Predatar brings proactive recovery testing into the equation, validating that your data isn’t just backed up but truly recoverable when it matters.
  4. Engage Leadership in Resilience: Effective resilience planning extends beyond IT; it requires senior leadership to understands the value and invests accordingly.

Ultimately, cyber resilience today isn’t about stopping every threat. It’s about ensuring that, when attackers break through, your business can recover fast, strong, and with confidence. By working as an ecosystem, Predatar, Dell, and Accenture are leading the way in showing that resilience is about far more than prevention—it’s about being ready for what comes next.

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05 November 2024

Rubrik: The Lie Behind Your Recovery Plan

At this year’s Control24 summit, we had an exceptional session from Harpinder Powar (Field CTO at Rubrik) and Rich Cassidy (Field CISO at Rubrik). They covered a wide range of topics, from the rise of nation-state attacks and the persistence of cybercriminals in corporate systems, to the misconception that cloud providers are a safety net. But one topic that really stood out was their take on disaster recovery testing.

It’s an uncomfortable truth: annual disaster recovery (DR) tests just aren’t enough anymore.

The End of the Annual DR Test

Rich shared a familiar story from his experiences working in a large Financial Services business, where DR testing felt more like routine exercises than real-world preparations.

This hit home for many in the audience. In today’s world, where cyber attacks can strike at any time, the idea that an annual test is enough is dangerously outdated. As Harpinder put it,

Too many businesses treat DR as a compliance exercise, not a real strategy. They believe a once-a-year test is sufficient to protect against the ever-evolving threat landscape, but when the time comes to actually recover, those plans often fall apart.

Predatar’s Stance: Continuous Testing, Continuous Resilience

At Predatar, we’re 100% aligned with Rubrik on this. We believe that recovery is not just an annual exercise; it’s a continuous requirement. Our platform is built on this philosophy – automating recovery testing so that businesses aren’t left scrambling when disaster strikes.

Disasters, whether from cyber attacks or operational failures, don’t happen on a schedule. You can’t afford to wait until next year’s DR test to know if your systems are ready. Continuous resilience requires continuous testing.

As Harpinder pointed out in the session:

This shift in mindset is essential for businesses today. Recovering everything isn’t always necessary or even possible, but ensuring that your critical services can come back online quickly is vital. That’s where Predatar’s automation comes in, we ensure that your critical systems are regularly tested, recovered into clean environments, and ready to go when you need them most.

The Illusion of Resilience

Rich also touched on something that resonates deeply with us at Predatar: the illusion of resilience. Many businesses have a misplaced sense of confidence, thinking they’re covered – when, in reality, they’re unprepared.

This is the heart of the issue. Annual DR tests might look good on paper, but they don’t reflect the realities of modern cyber threats. What’s more, businesses that aren’t testing their recoveries regularly are leaving themselves exposed to massive risks.

The Predatar Promise: Resilience Through Automation

Predatar’s platform is designed to close this gap. We believe in continuous testing because resilience can’t be achieved with a yearly check-in. By automating recovery tests, we ensure that when disaster strikes, whether it’s a cyber attack, hardware failure, or human error, your business is ready.

To borrow from Rich’s metaphor, it’s like the Emperor’s with new clothes — many businesses are confidently marching forward, unaware that they’re dangerously exposed.

Don’t let an untested recovery plan leave you vulnerable when you need it most. mMake sure your resilience is real. Discover Predatar’s AI powered Recovery Assurance for Rubrik, Veeam, Cohestity & IBM Storage environments on our website.

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31 October 2024

R17.1 Viper: AI Control with Rubrik Resilience.

Back in March 2024 as part of the R15: Honey Badger release, we took a significant step forward by adding Rubrik support to the Predatar platform. Since then, we’ve consistently rolled out new features every month to deepen user experience and bridge any gaps in resilience. Now, with the release of Predatar R17.1: Viper we’re excited to announce that Rubrik support has reached full parity with the IBM suite of backup products, along with several powerful enhancements that benefit all our users. This release aims to make recovery assurance management easier, smarter, and more secure, putting our end users in control like never before.

1. Complete Rubrik Feature Parity

With R17.1: Viper, we bring Rubrik users to feature parity with the full IBM backup suite, delivering a cohesive experience across backup products. This update unlocks advanced functionality such as Cyber Grading, Anomaly Detection, Data Visualisation, and the AI-powered Recovery Risk Report. Together, these features give users a comprehensive overview of their resilience status.. The Recovery Risk Report stands out for its AI-driven analysis, which dives into users’ Rubrik environments to identify any resilience gaps, highlight deviations from best practices, and recommend tailored improvements. Through Data Explorer, users now get a single view of all their backup workloads, with insights on backup and recovery status, recovery confidence, cyber grading, and anomaly tracking. This unified experience allows Rubrik users to harness insights and confidently manage their entire backup ecosystem with fewer clicks and more visibility.

2. Aurora: AIOps Assistant

As previewed at the start of October at this years Control24 event, this release also introduces a new demo mode for the Aurora AIOps Assistant, giving users a hands-on preview of our AI-powered assistant designed to simplify backup resilience guidance. Aurora uses the data within your recovery environment augmented with a consolidated knowledge base that spans IBM SP, SPP, Rubrik, and Veeam, answering questions and providing clear, actionable insights without users needing any backup expertise. This makes it a game-changer for teams at any level. Users can now experience how Aurora provides on-demand answers to common backup questions, highlight issues and risks in your estate, while making it it easier than ever to resolve issues and keep data secure. It’s like having an on-call expert right within the platform.

3. CleanRoomTM 3.0 Early Access

Again as previewed at Control24, CleanRoomTM 3.0 has also made its way into R17.1: Viper through our early adopter programme, providing users and partners with an enhanced configuration process. The updated setup screens are streamlined to make deployment even quicker without compromising the robust security foundations the Predatar CleanRoomTM is known for. Early adopters will enjoy a simplified, seamless experience, with the assurance that their critical data remains resilient and protected.

Predatar R17.1: Viper is packed with these updates to keep up with the evolving demands of modern recovery environments. Each feature in R17.1: Viper aligns with our commitment to simplifying resilience, empowering users, and ensuring that your data protection strategy stays ahead of the curve. You can check out more details on the release here.

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30 October 2024

Recovery Assurance. Is HPE dismissing backup?

At Control24, HPE’s Shariq Aqil and Sasha Acosta delivered a keynote that challenged the status quo. At Predatar we always strive to thinking differently, so this session was right up our street. It wasn’t just the content, but the refreshing perspective on recovery assurance that really stood out.

Some in the backup community might have felt uncomfortable with the discussion, which centred around the limitations of traditional backup – Particularly when it comes to speed of recovery. But for us, it was exactly the kind of forward-thinking conversation that needs to happen. It’s not about undermining backup, it’s about recognising the growing importance of answering the question, how fast can you recover?

The Challenge: Is Backup Being Dismissed?

When Shariq Aqil stated this, it might have sounded like a challenge to traditional backup solutions, which, while reliable, can often take time to restore data after an incident. And yes, time is the issue. In high-risk situations like ransomware attacks, businesses can’t afford the luxury of waiting weeks to access their critical systems.

But let’s be clear. HPE isn’t dismissing backup. It’s a vital part of the cyber resilience toolkit. Instead, Shariq was pointing out that recovery speed has become a non-negotiable factor in today’s fast-paced, high-stakes environment.

The Reality: It’s About Recovery Assurance, Not Backup

Shariq’s message wasn’t that traditional backup is obsolete. What he was really saying is that recovery is the new battleground. Backup protects the data, but the real test comes when you need to restore it. That’s where tools like Zerto’s Continuous Data Protection (CDP) step in. Unlike traditional backup, which is typically done every 24 hours, CDP replicates data continuously, ensuring businesses can recover within minutes and lose only seconds of data.

As Sasha Acosta explained during the session,

That’s not a slight against backup; it’s a recognition that in today’s climate, speed of recovery is just as important as having the data backed up in the first place.

The Bigger Picture: Recovery Assurance

At Predatar, we’re all about making sure that recovery isn’t just possible, but guaranteed. That’s why Predatar provides Recovery Assurance. Our focus is on giving businesses confidence that their data can be recovered quickly when it matters most.

Shariq made the importance of Recovery Assurance clear when he stated.

This highlights our ongoing collaboration and commitment to delivering real-world solutions that balance protection with recovery speed.

So, Is HPE Being Controversial?

To some, it might have seemed like HPE was dismissing backup in favour of newer technologies, but the reality is much more nuanced. What they’re saying is that recovery speed is critical and businesses need to rethink their strategies in the face of modern cyber threats. It’s not about choosing between backup and recovery, but about ensuring you have the right mix to stay resilient.

At Predatar, we love these kinds of conversations – They challenge assumptions, drive the narrative forward, and ultimately helping businesses not just survive but thrive in a landscape where ransomware and other cyber threats are becoming more sophisticated.

Backup protects your data, but fast recovery saves your business. That’s the real message we took away from HPE’s session at Control24, and we couldn’t agree more.

To learn more about HPE’s Cyber Resilience Vault with Zerto and Predatar you can watch Shariq and Sasha session from Control24 on-demand now. The event recording is available here.

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25 October 2024

Lets talk about the Elephant in Vegas

As the IBM TechXchange draws to a close and we wrap up another year in Vegas, it’s clear that the conversation around cyber resilience has evolved significantly over the last 12 months. Last year, the buzz was all about immutability, anomaly detection, XDR, SIEM and SOAR tools. These were seen and discussed as the front line in preventing, detecting and recovering from attacks.

Fast forward to this year, and while those tools and techniques are still very much front and centre, they’re being increasingly discussed alongside AI. The rise of AI-driven security and storage solutions has taken the spotlight, promising to revolutionise how we detect and respond to cyber threats. But amidst all the excitement, no one is really addressing the elephant in the room: the siloed nature of security and infrastructure teams.

Digging into the delegate analytics from TechXchange could provide some fascinating insights. Did security specialists stick to security sessions? Did infrastructure experts focus on storage? If that’s the case, it highlights the ongoing risk of keeping these two critical areas separate, even as AI creates new opportunities for better integration across systems.

And it’s not just security and infrastructure teams working in silos—within infrastructure itself, many teams are divided too. Most infrastructure departments have two or three backup products, with data scattered across different technologies, whether on-premise, in the cloud, or hybrid environments. Even these teams can be fragmented, and the lack of cohesion between them further widens the resilience gap.

The Real Opportunity: Breaking Down Silos

While AI is quite rightly grabbing headlines, breaking down the silos between security and infrastructure is arguably the the most impactful and cost-effective way to boost resilience. Bridging the gap between these teams can unlock massive benefits, enabling faster responses to threats and more robust recovery strategies. Yet, this important ‘fix’ isn’t being prioritised amongst businesses.

Here are three key actions companies should take to bridge this gap:

  1. Ensure Security Teams Gain Insights into Storage Security teams need a clearer understanding of how storage environments work, particularly in backup and recovery. If they know what’s working and what needs improvement on the storage side, they can better tailor their strategies to safeguard critical data. Conversely, storage admins should be informed about security trends and threats to ensure their systems are robust against potential breaches.
  2. Provide Consolidated Views Across Security and Storage A unified dashboard that brings together security and infrastructure insights is essential. Businesses should avoid the trap of isolated monitoring systems, which lead to disjointed decision-making. Instead, a consolidated view enables faster, more coordinated responses to threats, reducing the time it takes to detect and recover from cyber incidents.
  3. Focus on Recovery as Much as Prevention Businesses have become hyper-focused on stopping attacks, often neglecting the importance of being prepared for recovery. The reality is that no system is 100% secure, so it’s crucial for companies to invest in backup and recovery strategies. Making recovery just as much of a priority as prevention helps ensure that when attacks do happen, businesses can bounce back swiftly and effectively.

This year’s TechXchange may have been dominated by AI, but the real challenge remains the organisational silos that limit resilience. Bridging the gap between security and infrastructure teams (and even within infrastructure itself) is an immediate, cost-effective solution that can transform how businesses protect and recover from cyber threats. Let’s hope that by next year, the industry will finally be talking about and addressing the elephant in the room.

To find out how the Predatar platform can boost your cyber resilience by tackling these 3 challenges, contact the team.

See you next year, hopefully with fewer silos and stronger defences!

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