Improve Cyber Resilience: NetApp BlueXP and Google Cloud Backup

By Jason Blosil, principal marketing strategist, NetApp, Inc.

Ransomware attacks are on the rise, and cybercriminals are showing no signs of letting up anytime soon. The proliferation of ransomware as a service (RaaS) makes it easy for cybercriminals to carry out attacks and fuels a billion-dollar industry. Experts estimate that by 2031, ransomware attacks will occur every 2s.

At this point, you should just assume that your organization will be the target of an attack. You need to be prepared so that you can react quickly and get your business back up and running in the wake of a successful attack. And what’s essential to being prepared? Securing your backup data in the cloud to enable rapid data recovery.

Why data backup plan is critical?
A cyber-resilience plan should always include data backup – and here’s why:

• Backups are typically the last line of defense in recovering data after a successful cyberattack.

  You know how important data is to your business. And so do cybercriminals, which is why ransomware is such a lucrative business. The whole idea behind ransomware is to take your data hostage by encrypting it. After you pay the demanded ransom, your data is unencrypted, and you can return to business as usual.

  But that’s all just in theory. In reality, only 8% of organizations that pay a ransom get all their data back. The average ransomware victim loses 35% of their data. Bottom line: So that you can recover your data with only minimal loss, you need to maintain your own set of up-to-date, secure backup copies.

• Backups are an effective way to reduce the downtime (and costs) associated with an attack. Let’s face it, recovering from a ransomware attack is not cheap. According to a recent IBM study, the average cost of a ransomware attack is $4.54 million (not including the actual ransom payment). Most of that cost can be attributed to downtime, which at an estimated $9,000 per minute, or more than $500,000 per hour, adds up very quickly.

  To get back on your feet, you need to have copies of your data that are complete and easy to recover. The time that it takes to pay a ransom and then wait to maybe get your data back can translate into a huge expense. With secure and efficient backup copies, you can skip the ransom payment and get your business back up and running in no time.

3-2-1 backup
To be confident that your backup copies have your back, you need to follow the 3-2-1 rule:

• Create 3 copies of your data (one primary backup and two copies). Multiple copies offer multiple layers of data protection.
• Save your backup copies to 2 types of media (disk, object, and so on). This approach covers you if one media type fails.
• Keep at least one copy off site. On-site copies can be restored quickly, but if the on-site copy is compromised, the off-site copy offers a level of redundancy. This safety measure is especially important as cybercriminals increasingly target backup copies.

NetApp and Google Cloud can help you establish a backup plan that adheres to the 3-2-1 rule. By using NetApp BlueXP backup and recovery, you can securely back up your on-premises or cloud-based Ontap data to object storage in Google Cloud. Your data is protected with AES 256-bit encryption at rest and with a TLS 1.2 HTTPS connection in flight. Because BlueXP backups are based on NetApp Snapshot technology, only changed data blocks are copied (after the initial full backup). You get faster, more frequent backups to help meet your RPOs; nearly instant data restore capabilities if you need to recover; and reduced cloud storage costs.

Fight ransomware with NetApp and Google Cloud
Learn how NetApp can help you build a cyber-resilience practice with secure data backup in Google Cloud.