Secure, Scalable, and Simple Data Protection Storage that Is Purpose-Built for Veeam
Showcase by Enterprise Strategy Group by TechTarget
Abstract
Cyber-attacks are not slowing down, and cyber-risks continue to increase. Additionally, criminals are getting smarter: They understand that restoring data from a backup could neutralize their ransomware attacks, so they now target data protection infrastructures, too. That’s why today’s data protection solutions must not only be easy to use and cost-efficient in these challenging economic times, they must also include cyber-recovery capabilities.
The Impact of Ransomware on Data Protection
The scope of cyber-attacks is expanding. Attacks still target production data, but now backup copies are being hit by ransomware, as well. As research by TechTarget’s Enterprise Strategy Group shows, a combined 87% of respondents are either somewhat or very concerned their backup copies will be hit by a ransomware attack (see Figure 1).
Figure 1.
Concern Regarding Ransomware in Backup Copies
Source: Enterprise Strategy Group, a division of TechTarget, Inc.
Most organizations take extra measures to protect their backup copies. But there is typically room for improvement when it comes to protecting all of an organization’s secondary data.
Cyber-Recovery Risks and Challenges
Enterprise Strategy Group research shows that 40% of organizations believe that having a robust backup-infrastructure security strategy plays a vital role in preventing successful ransomware attacks. However, Enterprise Strategy Group has been observing several concerning trends associated with attacks that do succeed. Specifically:
• Paying a ransom does not guarantee that the organization will get all of its data back.
• Organizations often experience additional extortion attempts after the initial attack.
• Often, not all data is recoverable from a technical standpoint. Only 14% of organizations surveyed by Enterprise Strategy Group report being able to restore 100% of their stolen data after an attack (see Figure 2).
Figure 2.
Paying a Ransom Doesn’t Guarantee Recovery of Data
Source: Enterprise Strategy Group, a division of TechTarget, Inc.
Who Is Object First?
Object First is an IT solutions provider that is intent on helping those businesses implement a stronger defense against today’s frequent ransomware attacks by leveraging object-based storage. Specifically, it has made it its mission to provide the best immutable backup solution designed for environments that use Veeam software.
Founded in 2022, Object First is led by a group of data protection industry veterans, globally recognized entrepreneurs, and technologists who possess particularly impressive IT pedigrees. They include:
• Ratmir Timashev: a renowned entrepreneur and technologist. Ratmir is an Object First co-founder and the former CEO of Veeam, a leader in cloud data protection and data management software.
• Andrei Baronov: Prior to co-founding Object First, Andrei was co-founder and CTO of Veeam. His visionary product work and market awareness cemented Veeam’s place as a leader in backup, recovery, and data management.
• David Bennett: Now Object First’s CEO, David is a tech-industry veteran and seasoned channel executive with more than 30 years of IT channel leadership experience.
What Is the Object First Solution?
The team at Object First has created an S3-compatible, object-based backup storage appliance called Ootbi (Out-of-the-box Immutability) designed for use with Veeam software. It is designed primarily for midsize enterprises with constrained IT resources (constraints that make those companies especially vulnerable when ransomware attacks occur).
Object First Ootbi provides organizations using Veeam with a stronger defense against attacks through what Object First describes as effortless immutability integration (see Figure 3).
Figure 3.
Solution Overview
Source: Enterprise Strategy Group, a division of TechTarget, Inc.
The Enterprise Strategy Group Validation team is currently conducting a detailed technical review of this appliance. It observes that Ootbi provides ransomware resiliency right out of the box that is easy to deploy, manage, and scale. In addition, the solution offers fast backup and recovery, with backup storage capacity up to half a petabyte. It is also designed with performance capabilities to meet the data protection workload requirements of midsize organizations.
The Bigger Truth
Unfortunately, both targeted cyber-attacks and overall cyber-risks are escalating in frequency and severity. The current conditions place an additional burden upon data protection professionals who, in most organizations, already have their hands full protecting corporate data in general. Now, uncertain economic conditions are putting a lot of pressure on most IT disciplines—including data protection specialists—to support revenue-generating initiatives, particularly within midsize companies.
This is about more than preventing the devastating financial and reputational repercussions that ransomware attacks cause. It’s also about the fact that now, more than ever, resource-constrained organizations must make smarter purchases to avoid unexpected cost overruns resulting from deploying disjointed solutions that do not integrate well.
Today, modern data protection solutions must have solid cyber-recovery and hybrid cloud protection capabilities, but they also must be quick to deploy, easy to manage, and cost-efficient. Enterprise Strategy Group believes that Object First is well positioned with its S3-compatible storage appliance to help Veeam users tackle today’s ransomware-related challenges head on.
In fact, Object First has an ambitious vision: It wants organizations to never have to pay a ransom again. If you are using Veeam software, especially if you operate a VMware environment, Object First is who you’ll likely want to talk for on-prem, ransomware-proof immutable storage that is simple, powerful, and affordable.
Authors: Vinny Choinski, Senior Analyst, Monya Keane, Senior Research Analyst