What is Cybersecurity Mesh?

Have you come across the term “cybersecurity mesh”? Some consider it one of the most important trends in cloud security and other cyber concerns today.

One of the newest cybersecurity buzzwords is cybersecurity mesh, one of Gartner’s top strategic technology trends for 2022 and beyond. Cybersecurity mesh, as a concept, is a new approach to a security architecture that allows scattered companies to deploy and expand protection where it’s most needed, allowing for higher scalability, flexibility, and reliable cybersecurity control. The growing number of cybersecurity threats inspires new security solutions, such as cybersecurity mesh, which is one such modern innovation. The security mesh enables fundamental distributed policy enforcement and provides easy-to-use composable tools that may be plugged into the mesh from any location.

• Organizations that use a cybersecurity mesh architecture will see a 90 percent reduction in the cost impact of security incidents by 2024, according to Gartner.

Understanding Cybersecurity Mesh

Cybersecurity mesh is a cyber defense approach that uses firewalls and network protection solutions to secure each device with its boundary. Many security approaches guarantee a whole IT environment with a single perimeter, while a cybersecurity mesh takes a more holistic approach.

“Location independence” and “Anywhere operations” will be a crucial trend in the aftermath of the Covid-19 epidemic. This trend will continue as more and more organizations realize that remote working is more viable and cost-effective. Because firms’ assets are outside the traditional security perimeter, their security strategies must develop to meet modern requirements. The notion of cybersecurity mesh is based on a distributed approach to network and infrastructure security that allows the security perimeter to be defined around the identities of people and machines on the web. This security design creates smaller and more individual circumferences around each access point.

Companies can use cybersecurity mesh to ensure that each access point’s security is handled correctly from a single point of authority, allowing for centralized security rules and dispersed enforcement. Such a strategy is ideal for businesses that operate from “anywhere.” This also means that cybersecurity mesh is a component of a Zero Trust security strategy. With tight identity verification and authorization, humans and machines may safely access devices, services, data, and applications anywhere.

What Are The Benefits of Cybersecurity Mesh

It is recommended that organizations handle decentralized identity, access management, IAM professional services, and identity proofing when addressing their most critical IT security and risk priorities. The following are some of the ways that cybersecurity mesh can be beneficial:

Cybersecurity mesh will support over 50 percent of IAM requests: Traditional security strategies are complicated because most digital assets, identities, and devices are outside the company today. Gartner expects that cybersecurity mesh will handle the bulk of IAM requests and provide a more precise, mobile, and adaptable unified access management paradigm for IAM demands. Compared to traditional security perimeter protection, the mesh architecture provides organizations with a more integrated, scalable, flexible, and dependable solution to digital asset access points and control.

Delivering IAM services will make managed security service providers (MSSPs) more prominent: MSSP organizations can provide businesses with the resources and skillsets to plan, develop, purchase, and deploy comprehensive IAM solutions. By 2023, MSSPs that focus on delivering best-of-breed solutions with an integrated strategy will drive 40% of IAM application convergence; this process will move the emphasis from product suppliers to service partners.

The workforce identity life cycle will include tools for identity verification: Because of the significant growth in distant interactions, which makes it harder to distinguish between attackers and legitimate users, more robust enrollment and recovery methods are urgently needed. According to Gartner, 30 percent of big companies will use new identity-proofing systems by 2024 to address typical flaws in worker identification life cycle processes.

Standards for decentralized identity emerge: Privacy, assurance, and pseudonymity are hampered by centralized ways to maintain identification data. According to the mesh model’s decentralized approach, blockchain technology protects anonymity and allows individuals to confirm information requests by providing the requestor with the least required information. Gartner estimates that by 2024, the market will have a genuinely global, portable, decentralized identity standard to address business, personal, social, societal, and identity-invisible use cases.

Demographic bias will be minimized in identity proofing: Document-centric approaches to identity proofing have piqued the interest of many businesses. The rise of remote work in 2020 highlighted how bias based on race, gender, and other traits could manifest themselves in online use cases. As a result, by 2022, 95% of businesses will demand that identity-proofing companies demonstrate that they minimize demographic bias.

How to Implement Cybersecurity Mesh

The future of cybersecurity mesh appears to be promising. For example, Gartner estimated in October 2021 that this design would help minimize the cost impact of security events by 90% on average over the next five years. By 2025, Gartner expects it to serve more than half of all identification and access requests.

Mesh can therefore make a difference. How can you make the most of it? One method is to develop a roadmap for integrating cloud security and other technologies. This single, integrated solution can maintain zero trust and other critical defensive measures. It will be easier to create and enforce policies if this is done. It will also be accessible for security personnel to keep track of their assets.
Furthermore, IT teams can enhance this work by ensuring that basic protections are in place. Besides multi-factor authentication, Protected Harbor recommended data loss prevention, identity administration and management, SIEM, and more.

Conclusion

In the following years, the concept of cybersecurity mesh will be a significant trend, and it will provide some critical security benefits that standard cybersecurity techniques do not. As more businesses begin to digitize their assets and migrate to cloud computing environments, they recognize the need to protect sensitive data. Beyond the existing physical limits, the cybersecurity mesh will provide better, more flexible, and scalable protection to secure their digital transformation investments.

Protect your critical data assets, talk to Protected Harbor’s cybersecurity specialists about the notion of cybersecurity mesh and other advanced security solutions like remote monitoring, geoblocking, protected data centers, and much more.

What is IoT? Everything you need to know

Kevin Ashton created the term “Internet of Things,” or IoT, in 1999. However, it wasn’t until Gartner added IoT to its list of new emerging technologies in 2011 that it began to acquire traction on a worldwide scale. There will be 21.7 billion active connected devices globally by 2021, with IoT devices accounting for more than 11.7 billion (54 percent). This means that there are more IoT devices than non-IoT devices globally.

The Internet of Things impacts everyday life in various ways, including connected vehicles, virtual assistants, intelligent refrigerators, and intelligent robotics. But what exactly does the phrase imply? What are some of the benefits and challenges of the Internet of Things?

What is IoT?

The term “Internet of Things” is abbreviated as “IoT.” It refers to network-enabled devices and smart objects that have been given unique identities and are connected to the Internet so that they can communicate with one another, accept orders, and share with their owners; for example, when the butter in the intelligent refrigerator runs out, a grocery list may be updated. In a nutshell, this is the process of connecting items or machines. Simple domestic appliances to industrial instruments are among the networked devices that can be used.

Applications can be automated, and activities can be conducted or finished without human participation, thanks to the Internet of Things. Smart objects are internet-connected items. More than 7 billion IoT devices are currently connected, with analysts predicting that this number will climb to 22 billion by 2025.

How does IoT work?

An IoT ecosystem comprises web-enabled smart devices that gather, send, and act on data from their surroundings using embedded systems such as CPUs, sensors, and communication hardware. By connecting to an IoT gateway or other edge device, IoT devices can share sensor data that is routed to the cloud for analysis or examined locally. These devices may communicate with one another and occasionally act on the information they receive. Although individuals can use devices to set them up, give them instructions, or retrieve data, the gadgets do most of the work without human participation.

In a nutshell, the Internet of Things operates as follows:

• Sensors, for example, are part of the hardware that collects data about devices.
• The data collected by the sensors is then shared and combined with software via the cloud.
• After that, the software analyzes the data and sends it to users via an app or a website.

Why is the Internet of Things (IoT) important?

The Internet of Things (IoT) has quickly become one of the most essential technologies of the twenty-first century. Now that we can connect common objects to the internet via embedded devices, such as mobile phones, cars/trucks, and healthcare devices, seamless communication between people, processes, and things are conceivable.

Thanks to low-cost computers, the cloud, big data, analytics, and mobile technologies, material things can share and collect data with minimal human interaction. Digital systems can record, monitor, and alter interactions between related stuff in today’s hyper-connected environment. The physical and digital worlds collide, but they work together.

What is the Industrial Internet of Things, and how does it work?

The usage of IoT technology in a corporate setting is referred to as the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), the fourth industrial revolution, or Industry 4.0. The concept is similar to that of consumer IoT devices in the house. Still, the goal here is to analyze and optimize industrial processes using a combination of sensors, wireless networks, big data, AI, and analytics.

With just-in-time delivery of supplies and production management from start to finish, the impact may be considerably higher if implemented across a complete supply chain rather than just individual enterprises. Increased labor efficiency and cost savings are two possible goals, but the IIoT can also open up new revenue streams for organizations; manufacturers can also provide predictive engine maintenance instead of only selling a solitary product, such as an engine.

What are the benefits of using IoT?

The Internet of Things has made it possible for the physical and digital worlds to collaborate and communicate. It provides several advantages to businesses by automating and simplifying their daily operations.

Companies exploit the vast business value that IoT can offer as it grows dramatically year after year. Here are a few of the most significant advantages of IoT:

• To develop new revenue streams and business models
• Using data-driven insights from IoT data to enhance business choices
• To make corporate operations more productive and efficient.
• To make the customer experience better

Even though the economic impacts of the COVID-19 epidemic have had a substantial influence on global IoT spending, an IDC report shows that it will grow at a CAGR of 11.3 percent from 2020 to 2024.

What are the challenges in IoT?

The Internet of Things (IoT) has quickly become an integral component of how people live, interact, and conduct business. Web-enabled devices are transforming our worldwide rights into a more switched-on location to live in all over the planet. The Internet of Things faces a variety of challenges.

IoT security challenges:

1. Lack of encryption – While encryption is a terrific way to keep hackers out of your data, it’s also one of the most common IoT security issues.
   These drives have the same storage and processing capability as a conventional computer.
   As a result, there has been an increase in attacks in which hackers manipulated the algorithms to protect people.
2. Inadequate testing and upgrading — As the number of IoT (internet of things) devices grows, IoT manufacturers are more eager to build and market their products as rapidly as possible, without much consideration for security. Most of these gadgets and IoT items are not adequately tested or updated, making them vulnerable to hackers and other security risks.
3. Default passwords and brute-force attacks —
   Nearly all IoT devices are vulnerable to password hacking and brute force attacks due to weak passwords and login data.
   Any firm that uses factory default credentials on its devices exposes both its business and its assets and its customers and sensitive data to a brute force attack.
4. IoT Malware and ransomware – As the number of devices grows, the threat of malware and ransomware is made.
   Ransomware exploits encryption to effectively lock people out of numerous devices and platforms while still gaining access to their personal data and information.
   A hacker, for example, can take images using a computer camera.
   Hackers can demand a ransom to unlock the device and return the data by utilizing malware access points.
5. IoT botnet aimed at cryptocurrency – IoT botnet workers have the ability to change data privacy, which poses a significant risk to an open Crypto market. Malicious hackers could jeopardize the exact value and development of cryptocurrency code.
   Companies working on the blockchain are attempting to improve security. Blockchain technology is not inherently dangerous, but the app development process is.
6. Data collection and processing – Data is a critical component of IoT development. The processing or usefulness of stored data is more critical in this case.
   Along with security and privacy, development teams must think about how data is acquired, stored, and processed in a given context.

Conclusion

Researchers and developers from all around the world are fascinated by recent breakthroughs in IoT. The developers and researchers collaborate to bring the technology to a broader audience and help society feasible. However, improvements are only achievable if we consider current technical approaches’ many challenges and flaws.

Protected Harbor is a firm believer in IoT and is committed to delivering ultimate solutions for IoT which are secured and protected. With our 24×7 monitoring, 99.99%, and proper security in place, businesses can take full advantage of this ever-growing technology trend.

Unifying security operations and visibility throughout your entire company is becoming increasingly crucial. OT and IoT networks and devices have significant differences. Protected Harbor incorporates unique features and methodologies to consolidate and simplify security operations across these converged infrastructures. Contact us if you’d like to learn more about how we address OT and IoT visibility and security.

What are Cookies and Cache?

Introduction

You probably already know what cookies and cache are, but do you know what they do? Both are small text files saved by websites on your computer and mobile devices. They store information about your browsing habits and are used by websites to personalize your experience.

The purpose of cookies and cache is to speed up your browsing by saving elements from a website. It’s essential to clear the cookies cache after each visit. Otherwise, your computer might use the information stored to track you. The cookie may contain malware that can harm your privacy. This article will provide some helpful information about them. Let’s get started.

What are cookies and cache?

What are cookies?

A cookie is a small data file that a website stores on your computer for a predetermined period. These files can contain login data, browsing ID, location, IP address, time spent on a site, and preferences. Cookies help websites remember you. This allows marketers to display relevant ads when they visit a particular website.

What is cache?

A cache is a small file that stores information on a website. This is used to speed up loading pages when users visit a website. It also stores elements of a website such as content, design, etc. The cache can be used to track user preferences. Once a user has made a purchase, the store will save this information. This can help you customize and improve your shopping experience.

What’s the difference between cookies and cache?

Cache and Cookies were created to improve a website’s performance and make it more accessible by saving data on the client-side machine.

The primary distinction between Cache and Cookie is that Cache is used to save web page resources in a browser for long-term storage or to reduce loading time. On the other hand, cookies keep user preferences such as browsing sessions and track user preferences.

Although cookies and cache are both methods for storing data on a client’s machine, the two are not interchangeable and have different purposes.

• A cookie is used to save information to track various user characteristics, whereas a cache is used to speed up the loading of web pages.
• Cookies save user preferences, whereas cache saves resource assets like audio, video, and flash.
• Cookies usually expire after a certain amount of time, but the cache is stored on the client’s workstation until the user removes it explicitly.

Why are cookies and cache important to companies?

There’s a considerable probability that cookies and cache are already being used on your business website. Your website uses cookies if you use an automated ad platform like Google Ads, a content management system like WordPress, or any plugins or buttons that enable social media involvement.

• A shopping cart, a comment area, a login page that remembers your user ID, and the option to save preferences are all elements we take for granted. But we’d miss them if they weren’t around, and cookies and cache are what allow us to do so.
• Cookies are also commonly used to collect data for analytics. When website analytics applications, such as Google Analytics, compute relevant site performance statistics, they feed the process with raw data collected by cookies. It’s a way for site owners to learn how users found their site, how many times they’ve visited, how many and what pages they’ve viewed, and so on.
• Are customers arriving via pay-per-click advertisements, backlinks, or search engine results? Do they devote all of their attention to one product page while disregarding the others? Having such information is critical because it allows site owners to concentrate their efforts on the most significant traffic sources and web pages and optimize their marketing strategy.
• Cookies are also often used in automated ad targeting, showing users adverts based on their activity on your site or other sites. WordAds, for example, places adverts on each of your blog entries and tailors them to the user depending on information acquired through cookies.

How to Clear the Cache and Cookies in Your Web Browser?

One alternative is to delete all cookies that have already been set. Then you’ll be able to regain some control. It depends on whether you’re using a desktop or mobile browser. Users of Google Chrome and Firefox should consider installing clean cookies and cache extensions and using them to manage cookies, for example- cacheclean and clean all.

There are, however, manual methods.

To limit the number of cookies you receive, use the built-in options in each browser. Permanently block third-party/advertiser cookies, at the very least. Advertisers can discover methods around that easy option, so it’s not infallible, but it’s a start. On browsers like Firefox and Chrome, various plugins assist you in controlling cookies. For further information, see their web stores/repositories.

Conclusion

When you utilize cookies and cache on your website, you can give your visitors a more personalized and smoother experience.
They enable standard website functions like login and shopping carts. The user data they collect when tracking user behavior can be crucial for improving your marketing approach and engaging with clients more fully.

To ensure that customers’ cookie-collected personal information is not subject to unauthorized access, you’ll need to implement conventional security procedures.

How to ensure customer data safety?

Because hackers can try to enter into your site in various ways, it’s critical that a firewall protects it and that security monitoring is used to identify and remove malware and defend your site from all of the ways hackers try to break in.

Removing cookies and cache can help you mitigate your risks of privacy breaches. It can also reset your browser tracking and personalization. To help, Protected Harbor offers unmatched downtime, remote monitoring, protected desktop, and complete IT support.

Removing regular cookies could make certain websites harder to navigate and increase loading time. Without cookies and cache, internet users may have to re-enter their data for each visit. Different browsers store cookies in different places, so it is a hassle to remove cookies and cache and their usage permissions manually from time to time.

Protected Harbor ensures that your site doesn’t gather any data you won’t use, and you have a robust privacy and security plan without compromising the user experience. Partner with us and create a safety plan which works for you and your customers and always stay protected.

VoIP Monitoring Software’s Critical Security Flaws Discovered

There’s no question that VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) is revolutionizing how businesses communicate, but there are growing pains like all new technologies. One of the significant issues with VoIP is that it can be challenging to detect and diagnose problems. That’s where VoIP monitoring comes in.

VoIP monitoring is the process of keeping track of voice traffic and identifying issues with call quality. VoIPmonitor is a popular monitoring software that allows users to listen to and record VoIP calls. It includes call analysis, quality measurement, and media analysis features. A PENETRATION-TESTING & vulnerability research firm, Kerbit, detected new vulnerabilities in VoIPmonitoring, and issued a warning about the flaws and how hackers could exploit the scenario.

What is VoIPmonitor?

VoIPmonitor is an open-source network packet sniffer for SIP RTP and RTCP VoIP protocols that runs on Linux and allows users to monitor and troubleshoot conversation quality and decode, play, and archive calls in a CDR database.

The software involves the measurement of jitter, latency, and packet loss, all of which impact the quality of a VoIP call. Simply described, it’s the monitoring of VoIP conversations’ quality of service (QoS), which includes both fault and performance management. Monitoring metrics from the source to the destination and vice versa and the mean opinion score (MOS) and round trip time (RTT) will ensure that everything is under control throughout the communication and connection.

What are the flaws identified by Kerbit?

Kerbit detected three vulnerabilities, which are listed below:

• CVE-2022-24259 (CVSS score: 9.8) – An authentication bypass problem in the GUI’s “cdr.php” component allows an unauthenticated attacker to elevate privileges via an exceptionally crafted request.
• CVE-2022-24260 (CVSS score: 9.8) – An SQL injection vulnerability exists in the GUI’s “api.php” and “utilities.php” components, allowing attackers to elevate privileges to administrator and retrieve sensitive data.
• CVE-2022-24262 (CVSS score 7.8) – A remote command execution via the GUI’s configuration restore capabilities due to a missing check for archive file types, which allows a bad actor to execute arbitrary instructions via a forged file.

The vulnerability allows users to upload any file extension they want and can get them to run, essentially giving hackers admin privileges. The flaws could have been used to crash applications, but bulk-uploading extensions and overwhelming the network.

Unauthenticated attackers could elevate privileges to the administrator level and execute arbitrary commands if critical security vulnerabilities in VoIPmonitor software are successfully exploited.

Other Types of VOIP Attacks?

VoIP technology is just as reliable and secure as a traditional telephone, if not more so than a cellular connection. Every network must be appropriately set up and fortified to be completely hacker-proof.

Most VoIP cyber assaults are caused by administrators failing to implement adequate security measures, resulting in VoIP security attacks and, in particular, SIP hacking. SIP servers, after all, are at the heart of both internal IP telephony and commercial services, as seen in the diagram:

It’s vital to keep your SIP servers safe. The following are four types of SIP-based VoIP hacks that have gained popularity in the telecom business in recent years:

1. SIP Amplification Attack – DDoS
   As this protocol has become widely employed in VoIP systems, SIP hacking remains one of the most prevalent security concerns in the telecom space. The following is a typical scenario for a SIP amplification attack:
   A hacker uses DDoS to launch a mass application layer attack on the SIP protocol to disrupt it. For example, an attacker might compromise SIP servers and send many (10+) faults to the victim, allowing them to send IP Spoofed packets and repeated Responses.
2. SIP Trust Relationships Hack
   SIP gateways rely on SIP Trunks for call initiation and CDR/invoice management, making them easy targets for VoIP attacks. SIP trunks frequently lack passwords or employ IP-based filters for trunk authentication. Most SIP trunks also have Direct INVITE privilege without REGISTER, making them vulnerable to assaults.
3. SIP Authentication Hack

SIP 2.0 uses the MD5 message-digest technique to hash the UAC password to offer extra security to VoIP networks.
The issue with such an authentication method is that it isn’t completely safe. When UAC requests authentication from a UAS, the latter generates and sends a digest challenge to the UAC. The most basic authentication challenge consists of the following:

• a Realm – required to identify credentials within a SIP message.
• a Nonce – a unique MD5 string produced by the UAC for each registration request; A Nonce has a timestamp and a secret, a non-reusable phrase that ensures it has a finite lifespan.

On the other hand, Hashed passwords are no longer sufficient to defend VoIP systems from sophisticated authentication assaults. With a Network Analyzer or a brute-force attack, hackers may now crack MD5 cash and gain access to a SIP authentication header.

4. Creating a Fake Caller ID/ Spoofing

In SIP, caller ID isn’t adequately protected, and hackers have lots of tools for spoofing the SIP INVITE Request Message from the header. This is a prevalent method of voice fraud used to attack PBX systems. As a result, you must also protect that endpoint to avoid roaming fraud or call hijacking.

What can we do?

By including VoIP in your portfolio, you may improve your commercial offering by having IP-based voice features that bring value to both data and video. It also allows you to compete with over-the-top (OTT) service providers who cannot guarantee service quality (QoS). After all, quality and security are the fundamental differentials that customers are most likely to notice regarding voice service. Delivering faultless VoIP call quality involves real-time customer experience management, including total visibility of the traffic running through your IP network.

The VoIP monitoring market is heating up as businesses search for the right solution that fits their needs. Companies are always concerned about security when giving their staff or contractors unfettered access to internet and phone services in remote environments because of the inherent risk of not being in a secure network. However, many remote users still want access to secure phone and internet lines to stay connected without worrying about data costs.

Protected Phones by Protected Harbor is a cloud-based unified VoIP solution that provides businesses with the security and flexibility they need to enable remote work and 24×7 live support with a dedicated system. To learn more about our solution and how we can partner with you, please visit our website or contact us today.

Transportation Digitalization

Transportation, not just in the U.S., but around the globe, is undergoing a digital transformation thanks to a handful of companies using new technologies to create value for customers and carriers alike. The result is that transportation companies will be able to do things tomorrow that they can’t even do today—and movers and shakers from the transportation industry agree that it’s happening faster than anyone imagined.

Since the transportation and logistics business is one of the world’s fastest-growing industries, it must adapt more than ever from long-standing practices to meet the difficulties of international trade. By 2026, it is expected that the worldwide logistics industry to be worth $16.445 billion.

What is digitalization in transportation?

Transportation digitalization is a broader term that refers to the use of electronic means, such as computers and smart devices, to facilitate the collection and exchange of data in the transportation sector. Digitalization in transportation is helping to improve the efficiency and safety of transit systems and private vehicle fleets by providing real-time updates, enhancing customer experience, and increasing transparency.

The role of digitalization in transportation technology has become more apparent as mobile devices have proliferated among consumers. In automobile fleets, for example, digitalization allows for remote monitoring, so businesses can inspect vehicles remotely rather than checking each vehicle manually. Digitalization enables transportation companies to improve processes by increasing visibility into supply chains and allowing companies to identify areas that need improvement.

Digitalization has allowed for increased operational efficiency through automation and improved routing of shipments. This has been achieved through machine learning forecasting techniques and algorithms used to predict where demand will be highest based on historical data. With this insight, companies can plan more effectively.

How transportation and logistics services are benefiting from digitalization

While physical delivery is required for transportation services, digitalization is revolutionizing the sector throughout the transportation supply chain  in many ways.

The Internet of Things, AI, new energy, and Big Data drive this transformation. Everyone in the industry has a shared vision: to provide safe, reliable, and efficient services to customers. Consequently, the digitalization of the transportation industry is a necessary step in achieving this goal. Here are some of the most important benefits of Transport Digitization.

• Vehicle/ship design
• Infrastructure: rail, ports, roads, bridges, tunnels, and terminals
• Transportation operations (e.g., capacity allocation, cargo management, shipment tracking and tracking, customer service, and so on).
• Supporting services: monitoring, warehousing, and inspection
• Transport equipment maintenance and repair
• Information and document transmission among multi-players (shippers, shipping lines, port authorities, Customs, terminal operators, and so on).

Characteristics of digital trends

• Improved, excellent connectivity; Smooth operations
• Higher levels of automation; reduced margin of error
• Internet of Things, cloud computing, big data analytics, automation and robotics, and artificial intelligence are the most common digital technologies and solutions.
• Digital platforms have evolved into a new business model that enables innovative transportation services, more effective service delivery, and more service credibility.
• Both corporations and authorities are adopting a data-driven strategy.
• Digital synergies between transportation/logistics services and other service sectors: The digital transformation of transportation and logistics services relies on the support of other services, but it also accelerates the advancements of those services, such as telecom, CRS, construction and engineering, energy, environment, and other business services.
• Transport Digitalization can improve profits and customer satisfaction.

The industry itself is vast and highly diversified, with countless sub-sectors and modes of transportation. However, three major internal forces drive the transformation: improving customer experience, increasing business agility, and increasing operational efficiency.

Freight Transportation Digitalization in Different Forms

Digitalization and the future of transportation!

The transportation industry has grown significantly over the decades and is an important area for improvement. Technology plays a huge role in keeping the industry moving forward to meet growing demands. This is why the digitalization of this sector is so important. As efficient as it already is, the industry can become even more effective with technology. It’s exciting to see what future innovations hold for the transportation industry.

In addition to the benefits, digital transformation also creates a new business model. It allows organizations to build more efficient transportation processes. As a result, the company can improve its profitability by increasing efficiency and reducing costs. The digitalization of the transportation industry is a critical trend shaping the industry’s future. For example, the integration of new technologies has boosted efficiency. A digitalized transport infrastructure will be more responsive to its customers and more affordable to them.

A digitally-driven business is a win-win situation. Its implementation will ensure the future of transport. Not only will it create new opportunities for companies but it will make the transportation industry more competitive moving forward.

To wrap things up

It’s become clear that transportation companies should be looking to digitalize their business practices – whether they operate across thousands of miles or within their neighborhood. The only questions are which direction you choose to go in and how your decision will affect your business for years to come. These are fundamental questions, and you owe it to yourself to give them due consideration before making your decision.

Short term, you can use technology to your advantage, But in the long term, your only choice is to embrace technology. If you haven’t already started to implement digitalization, now is the time to strike and go digital with one of the leading transportation services providers such as TMS Digital.

TMS Digital suite of logistic software includes Dispatch, Tickets, IFTA Manager, Equipment Maintenance, a Drive Safety package, and more! Imaging, EDI options, and email triggers help keep you paperless. With our 3^rd party APIs and interfaces, Mobile applications, and remote access to the cloud, we can help you bring your business into the future! In addition, we would be remiss if we did not tell you about our highly configurable and customizable options.  Contact us today to learn more!

What is a Disaster Recovery Plan?

A disaster recovery plan (DRP) is also known as a disaster recovery implementation plan or an IT disaster recovery plan. It is a documented policy and process that helps an organization execute recovery processes in an unfortunate event to protect a business IT infrastructure and, more broadly, promote recovery.

DRP is crucial for any business. It identifies the purpose and objective of the plan and the people responsible for its implementation. It is essential to have a plan in case of an emergency. This article will explain the importance of having a disaster recovery system in place for your business.

Disaster Recovery Plan Goals

A disaster recovery plan’s goal is a series of steps that must be taken before, during, and after a natural or man-made disaster so that everyone on the team can follow them. A disaster recovery plan should address both purposeful and unintentional man-made disasters, such as the consequences of terrorism or hacking, as well as accidental disasters, such as equipment failure.

Your disaster recovery plan should contain goals for RTO (recovery time objective) and RPO (recovery point objective).

• RTO is the amount of time a business can be down in a disaster. It should be as short as possible – for example, four hours is the maximum acceptable downtime. The RTO is determined by how much the interruption disrupts regular operations and how much income is lost per unit hour due to the disaster. These characteristics, in turn, are dependent on the equipment and application in question (s). The length of an RTO is expressed in seconds, minutes, hours, or days. It’s crucial to include in a catastrophe recovery plan (DRP).
• The Recovery Point Objective (RPO) is the amount of time that passes during a disruption before the amount of data lost exceeds the Business Continuity Plan’s maximum permitted threshold or “tolerance. For example, if the last available good copy of data is from 18 hours ago and the RPO for this firm is 20 hours, we are still inside the maximum allowable threshold. In other words, it answers the question, “Up to what point in time might the business process be recovered given the volume of data lost during that interval?”

DR plan goal covers the procedures for contacting support and escalating issues. It should also include insurance coverage to protect you from any legal or financial problems that may arise. The disaster recovery plan should have a prioritized list of contacts within the disaster recovery team. You should hire a professional or a recovery solutions provider to help you create your plan. If you do not have a disaster recovery plan, your data will be unavailable to anyone without it.

What are the elements of a DRP?

A disaster recovery plan should have several elements:

• It must define what applications, documents, and resources are critical to the business.
• You should also identify offsite storage and backup procedures.
• A good plan will address the risks and threats associated with any emergency.
• Your DRP should also address the recovery of physical systems. If a disaster strikes, your organization will be ready to handle the crisis.
• This will ensure the continuity of your business.

Measures for Disaster Recovery Plan

Your plan will be broken down into two main parts: preventative measures and corrective measures.

Preventative measures focus on preventing disasters and restoring systems before they occur. In general, avoiding disaster is always the best option. When you’re thinking about preventative measures, you’re thinking about all of the factors that could lead to a disaster. Whether you have daisy-chained power lines or no door lock in your server room, this proactive approach to potential problems can save you a lot of time and effort in the long run.

The corrective measure focuses on repairing and restoring systems after a disaster occurs. Policies and procedures for a wide range of situations should be included in corrective actions. They should also assist you in determining recovery responsibilities for leaders and managers throughout your firm. Always see your BDR strategy as a collaborative effort inside your company.

What is a Disaster Recovery Checklist?

A disaster recovery checklist is an essential document for any organization. It helps minimize the damage caused by unplanned outages. Even a single lost file can significantly disrupt a company’s operations. Because documents are so hard to recover, companies need to ensure they’re properly backed up and stored in a remote location.

The first step in any disaster recovery plan is to identify the specific risk associated with the incident. A business may be at various risks, including natural catastrophes. While these events are rare, they can damage an organization’s reputation and profits. A disaster recovery plan will help minimize the damages while ensuring long-term business operation.

• Many studies have shown that one in four businesses will fail to recover from a disaster, and this statistic is primarily due to a lack of a DRP.
• 93 percent of organizations that lose data access for 10 days or more due to a disaster file for bankruptcy within a year, according to the National Archives & Records Administration in Washington.

A DRP is like a trekker’s contingency plan, with a comprehensive checklist that outlines the steps to take in case of a crisis.

What should be included in a Disaster Recovery Checklist

Disaster recovery plans often include a detailed checklist. Typical items on a DR checklist include recovery objectives, incident reporting, action response, and recovery procedures. The DR plan should consider your unique business needs and system vulnerabilities. It should be thorough and comprehensive to ensure your success.

As a result, you should employ a disaster recovery checklist that lays out the procedures you’ll need to do to cope with the crisis effectively.

The following items should be included in the disaster recovery plan checklist:

• Perform a risk assessment as well as a business impact analysis.
• Determine your rehabilitation goals.
• Assign roles and tasks to members of a disaster recovery team.
• Make a disaster recovery site.
• Be ready for a setback.
• Keep important documents in a secure area.
• Determine your equipment requirements.
• Make communication channels available.
• Procedures for dealing with disasters in detail
• Notify all relevant parties about the event.
• A disaster recovery plan should be tested and updated regularly.
• Choose the best disaster recovery plan depending on your requirements.

Plan your disaster recovery strategy

A successful disaster recovery plan follows a rigid procedure to rebuild systems that have experienced significant damage or are just too challenging to repair. The same strategy should be used to help define the checklists that give employees the instructions they need to rebuild critical systems in case of a catastrophe.’

You have two options: do-it-yourself disaster recovery (a less expensive but more error-prone approach) or partner with a backup and recovery service provider (reliable and effective option). To evaluate what will work best for you and your team, Protected Harbor considers every facet of your organization (e.g., the number of employees, the size of your IT infrastructure, the available budget, risk issues, and so on).

This leads right back to Protected Harbor’s four-point quick checklist. Are you experiencing slowdowns in connectivity? (If so, you may need more bandwidth.) Are you losing applications or entire systems? (If so, you may need more redundant assets.) Have you ever been breached? (If so, you probably need additional firewalls.) How often do you experience power outages? (If your answer is “too often,” you may need more backup power and generators.) These questions are just the start; Protected Harbor can help determine the answers to these and other questions –– putting you in the best possible position for avoiding disasters. Plan your disaster recovery strategy with us; contact us now.

What is an Incident Response Plan (IRP) Checklist?

An Incident Response Plan is your best bet for protecting your company from the consequences of a data breach. The time to plan and prepare for security crises is NOW, whatever they may be, long before they occur.

What is an Incident Response Plan?

A cybersecurity incident response plan (IR plan) is a set of guidelines designed to assist businesses in preparing for, detecting, responding to, and recovering from network security problems. Most IR strategies are tech-focused, addressing concerns like malware detection, data theft, and service disruptions. However, any sizeable cyber assault can have a wide-ranging impact on a firm; therefore, the plan should include finance, customer service, HR, employee communications, legal, and other outside entities.

Why is Incident Response Plan Important?

An Incident Response Plan is important because it defines how to reduce the length and severity of security incidents and identify stakeholders, streamline digital forensics, enhance recovery time, and prevent unfavorable publicity and customer attrition.

Small cybersecurity mishaps, such as malware infection, can quickly escalate into more significant issues, resulting in data breaches, data loss, and company interruption.

A good incident response procedure will help your company reduce damages, patch exploitable vulnerabilities, restore affected systems and processes, and close the attack vector.

Incident response is essential for preventing future occurrences and maintaining a company that handles sensitive data like PII, PHI, or biometrics.

IRP Audit

Before writing your Incident Response Plan, you should conduct a security audit of your company. This will help you identify weak areas. You should also identify who is responsible for the incident and determine who will handle the incident. In addition, you should define the parties involved and who will handle it.

Creating an IRP should include several key stakeholders, such as representatives from different company areas, including outside PR. In addition to the team members, it should also include the CEO, board members, and PR representatives. The process should be transparent and approved by key stakeholders easy to implement, but it should not be overly complex. It must be simple to understand, and it should be based on a multi-tiered approach.

How to create an Incident Response Plan & Checklist?

Create an Incident Response Plan

• The first and most important step in incident response planning is preparation. It should include defining the roles of the IR team and creating an underlying security policy. The security policy should identify the locations and relative value of sensitive data, as well as how many IT resources your company needs to respond to an attack. Make sure that your executives are on board with the plan before it goes live.
• The second step in creating an Incident Response Plan (IRP) is testing. It is critical to test the IRP to ensure that all components are working correctly. The purpose of testing is to determine whether the plan is effective and whether the team can handle the incident effectively. The IRP must be supported by upper management. The plan must be able to prevent or mitigate a security breach. It must be easy to implement, and it should be quick to execute.
• The final step in creating an Incident Response Plan is to define the response, the incident, or the event that will trigger it. There are many types of incidents, and different responses must be developed for each. Your IRP should identify the kind of security incident likely to occur and identify responsible parties. In addition, you should include a comprehensive communication plan, including the methods and frequency of communication with the affected parties.

Creating an incident response plan checklist can help your staff cope with a significant incident. IR Plan checklist is made keeping in mind what should be done after an incident.

Post-Incident– The ultimate step of an incident response plan is to create a post-incident investigation checklist. This checklist should include various information, such as disk images, logs, and network traffic reports. It should also detail key elements, including entry point, root cause analysis, and organizational resources targeted in the aftermath of an incident. After the investigation is complete, the team should recommend changes to prevent the same occurrence from occurring again.

Recovery– A recovery phase focuses on bringing systems back to normal operation. The response team must notify affected parties of the nature and extent of the attack within a specified period, such as 72 hours for GDPR. Once the system has been returned to production, the team needs to perform necessary tests, validate that it is operating normally, and document the process. The entire process should take a minimum of a day, depending on the size of the IT network and the business operation.

The recovery phase involves bringing affected systems back to production and testing them regularly. A well-developed plan should include these processes. The more specific they are, the better your plan will be. The more thorough and comprehensive your plan is, the more effective it will be.

Conclusion

The purpose of our cyber incident response plan checklist is to assist your IT security team in developing a complete, coordinated, repeatable, and effective incident response strategy.

Please remember that creating a cybersecurity incident response plan is never a one-time task. Unfortunately, enterprises and their IT security teams may find themselves outmaneuvered by hackers who pivot in their attack strategies/TTP and malware choice if they do not engage in frequent incident response training and IR exercises, including real cyber assault scenarios.

This article should provide you with the information and resources you need to design and implement a successful incident response plan. Partner with Protected Harbor to add best-in-class behavioral analysis to all of your essential data repositories and infrastructure to ensure your data is safe.

At Protected Harbor, we work with individual customers on an Incident Response Plan (IRP) and help them perform an audit to determine where they are today within their IRP. We follow the Critical Controls and guide our customers that match their Incident Response Plan with the specific controls. This provides them with the ability to have a real improvement plan in place.

With that being said, don’t miss out on other crucial aspects of data protection that can be included in your checklist—things like protected data center, disaster recovery plan, backups, testing, and so on. Contact us to create an IRP which is best for you.

How to Save your Business Through Backup and Disaster Recovery

The world is increasingly evolving and becoming connected globally. Ever since the inception of the internet, people and businesses have shared and stored their data online. This only means one thing, we have more to lose than ever before. It does not matter what type of business you operate, but your data and protection are vital for your business operations. Before you think that you do not need a data backup or a recovery plan, we would like to clarify a few points that are essential for your business survival:

1. People make mistakes
2. Software or hardware failure may result in the failure of primary data.
3. accidental deletion of data and malicious ransomware attacks may halt your business.

Hence several things are out of our control, and it is essential to have a recovery plan to avoid losing critical business data.

What You Can Do to Save Your Business from Losing Critical Data

1. Have a Disaster Recovery Plan (DR)

A disaster recovery plan is a set of rules and SOPs (standard operating procedure) on a formal document created by the organization. It entails all the details on tackling situations like cyber-attacks, power outages, any act of God, and other disruptive and unexpected events. Having a DR is vital for your business as it ensures that your business operations resume back to normal after an accident has caused an interruption. Without a DR, your company can suffer heavy financial losses, loss of reputation, and unhappy customers. A DR can help in the following ways.

• Control damage and financial loss
• Your employees become trained to tackle unexpected cyber security situations.
• There is a streamlined restoration process and the guidelines to restore and bring business on track.

2. Backup Validation

Backup validation is an integral part of the Disaster Recovery Plan, which allows you to test your backup protocols’ consistency and recoverability. Every data block retrieved from the backup is given a checksum via validation. The sole exception is file-level backups stored in cloud storage, which must be validated. The consistency of the metadata recorded in the backup is checked to ensure validity.

Validation is a time-consuming procedure, even for a tiny incremental or differential backup. This is because the operation verifies the data physically present in the backup and all of the information that can be recovered by selecting the backup. This necessitates access to backups that have already been produced. While successful validation indicates a high likelihood of recovery, it does not examine all elements that affect the recovery process.

It is vital to test backups and restore processes to check if they work. There is a chance that some backup archives are corrupt or damaged, which will hamper the restoration process. You must test the restore process; it helps learn about data recovery from backups should there be a disaster. The testing can also help you learn about real-life risks without losing the actual data.

3. Use Air-Gapped Backups to Isolate the data

An air gapping technique is one of the most popular backup strategies. At any given time, all your business’ critical data shall have a copy stored offline, which will be disconnected and inaccessible via the internet. Air gapping isolates data from unsecured networks or production environments, and they can be stored off-site.

4. In-house Data Recovery Solutions

Your business will greatly benefit from a data backup solution all in-house. It can be a physical server on or off-site. If data backups are on the cloud (online backup), they will take an ample amount of time to get restored, costing you time and money. Some IT companies deploy 10Gb pipe to hosts allowing them great flexibility, and they are never limited to their network. They are cost-effective for small size businesses. The data is also accessible without the internet, which is excellent as it allows access to data 24/7.

Choose your IT management partner carefully.

You must have an excellent IT management partner who can be available for your business 24/7. These IT partners must have the proper skill set, which is an essential first step to ensure your data remains safe and uncompromised. The responsibility to protect crucial business data is vast, and you must work with companies that provide you with excellent customer support. You never know when your data is attacked or compromised.

If you want to ensure your company has the necessary IT infrastructure in place to continue operating during and after a disaster, it’s crucial to partner with a reputable and reliable IT provider. Protected Harbor ensures your data is backed up and is continuously being monitored to ensure its integrity so that we’d be able to restore your data should it ever get lost or corrupted. By working with Protected Harbor, you can have peace of mind knowing that your business is protected, no matter what happens.

Above all, it is vital to have a backup plan. The strategies outlined in this article will help you to achieve that. Armed with the knowledge of how to recover your business after a disaster, you can be confident that your investors and employees will thank you. With Protected Harbor by your side, you will be better prepared for any eventuality, and in this case, that’s going to count for a lot. Contact us now.

What are DaaS providers?

DaaS is short for Desktop as a Service. It’s a cloud-based computing solution that gives you access to your desktop and remote working via the internet, regardless of where you are. As a result, third-party hosts provide one sort of desktop virtualization. A virtual desktop or hosted desktop service is another name for DaaS.

DaaS Providers

If you’re diving into cloud services to deliver your applications, a growing proportion of these apps may be hosted in the cloud. When your application needs storage, networking, and computing resources, you can host it yourself or with a service provider. But you might want to consider a third option: a DaaS provider.

DaaS providers allow on-demand access to infrastructure and app environments from a single provider, with lower costs than buying your own servers. They also provide services like load balancing, high availability, and disaster recovery if needed. In basic terms, DaaS service providers are organizations that provide desktop virtualization services as per your needs.

Why should you consider using a DaaS provider?

Data centers are a necessity in today’s digital world. But, with so many options and daas offerings, and different features, choosing the right one can be overwhelming. However, it is not hard to find the right one once you know what you want.

It can offer increased security for your managed desktop, servers and ensure your business continuity is never compromised. They can provide you with multi-factor authentication, 24/7 support, and the facilities to install a disaster recovery plan on-site. Many data centers have built-in backup power systems to keep your network running smoothly at any time of day.

Desktop as a service (DaaS) providers offer a wide range of hosted desktop solutions. Many can provide turnkey virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI) implementations that support multiple users, but some also offer single-user desktops. Some providers offer additional services and management options, while others provide only essential software.

There are many reasons to consider using a DaaS provider:

• They can allow IT to focus on more strategic projects by taking over day-to-day tasks such as application and OS updates and patches.
• They can simplify the deployment of new desktops by reducing the need for manual configuration.
• They can reduce hardware costs through thin clients or zero clients.
• They can enable BYOD policies by allowing users to access their desktops from any device with an internet connection.

What are some of the benefits of using a DaaS provider?

There are numerous benefits of daas, making it an ideal solution for businesses. By adopting DaaS offerings and cloud desktop services, companies can enjoy improved scalability, enhanced data security, and simplified IT management. With DaaS solutions, businesses can seamlessly provide their workforce with flexible and secure desktop environments, reducing operational overhead and ensuring remote accessibility across various devices.

The most obvious benefit of a DaaS provider is the flexibility it allows your business. This can be particularly advantageous if you need to hire new staff quickly. You can add more desktops and operating systems whenever needed and remove them at short notice.

When you use a DaaS solution, you only pay for what you use, so there’s no need to worry about capital expenditure or over-provisioning.

The fact that desktops and operating systems are hosted offsite and accessed over the internet makes it easy for employees to work from anywhere — a definite plus in an era when remote working and cloud computing is becoming increasingly common.

Another benefit of DaaS solutions such as citrix virtual apps is that they’re easy for IT teams to manage, as the provider does all the work. The only maintenance required on your part is to keep client machines up to date and running smoothly.

Setting up a desktop virtualization solution using traditional methods can be expensive, so you may save money by using a service DaaS provider instead.

Who are the big players in the market?

Stability, security, mobility, and multi-factor authentication are all features to look for in a DaaS service provider. The following is a list of the Top Desktop as a Service (DaaS) providers in 2021:

• Amazon Web Services – workspaces
• Microsoft Azure – Windows Virtual Desktop
• Protected Harbor Desktop
• Citrix Managed Desktops
• VMware Horizon Cloud
• Cloudalize- DaaS

How to choose the best desktop as a service solution

Choosing the right managed desktop solution can be difficult. First, you should assess your business needs when deciding on the right DaaS platform. Consider whether you’re looking for a secure virtual desktop infrastructure vdi solution or need help with end-user support and remote working. Second, look into the solution’s scalability and ensure it fits your current and future IT requirements.

Finally, research the DaaS platform provider’s pricing structure and customer service to ensure that you get the best value for your budget. With this in mind, you should have no trouble finding the perfect desktop-as-a-service solution for your business so that you can leverage all benefits of daas.

Conclusion

Any of the players named above will not let you down. All of them are excellent DaaS providers. Ultimately, it comes down to which cloud services best satisfies your needs while focusing on the cost savings.

When you’re short on time and need to enable a vast workforce, it’s challenging to examine every DaaS service provider access and make an informed decision.

We leverage a unified data center in a DaaS solution like Protected Harbor Desktop to deliver desktop virtualization services to end-users over the internet, on their preferred device, and at their preferred time, and regular snapshots and incremental backups keep your essential data safe.

Protected Desktop is a cloud-based virtual desktop that provides a wholly virtualized Windows environment. Your company will incorporate highly secure with integrated multi-factor authentication and productive applications within DaaS by utilizing one of the most recent operating systems (OS). With our on-demand recovery strategy, we monitor your applications for a warning indication that may require proactive action.

Protected Harbor alleviates the problems that come with traditional, legacy IT systems. Another significant benefit of our high-quality DaaS solution is that it allows you to extend the life of your endpoint devices that would otherwise be obsolete. Set up your desktop; click.

What is a Data Center Architecture, and how to design one?

Traditional data centers consisted of multiple servers in racks and were difficult to manage. These centers required constant monitoring, patching, updating, and security verification. They also require heavy investments in power and cooling systems including data center optimization. Data center architects have turned to the cloud and virtualized environments to solve these issues.

However, these cloud solutions are not without their own risks. These challenges have led to a new approach to data center architecture. This article describes the benefits of a virtualized data center and how it differs from its traditional counterpart.

Types of Data Center Architecture

There are four primary types of data center architecture, each tailored to different needs: super spine mesh, mesh point of delivery (PoD), three-tier or multi-tier model, and meshwork.

1. Mesh Network System: The mesh network system facilitates data exchange among interconnected switches, forming a network fabric. It’s a cost-effective option with distributed designs, ideal for cloud services due to predictable capacity and reduced latency.
2. Three-Tier or Multi-Tier Model: This architecture features core, aggregation, and access layers, facilitating packet movement, integration of service modules, and connection to server resources. It’s widely used in enterprise data centers for its scalability and versatility.
3. Mesh Point of Delivery: The PoD design comprises leaf switches interconnected within PoDs, promoting modularity and scalability. It efficiently connects multiple PoDs and super-spine tiers, enhancing data flow for cloud applications.
4. Super Spine Mesh: Popular in hyperscale data centers, the super spine mesh includes an additional super spine layer to accommodate more spine switches. This enhances resilience and performance, making it suitable for handling massive data volumes.

Fundamentals of a Data Center Architecture

What is a data center architecture?

In simple terms, it describes how computer resources (CPUs, storage, networking, and software) are organized or arranged in a data center. As you may expect, there are almost infinite architectures. The only constraint is the number of resources a company can afford to include. Still, we usually don’t discuss data center network architecture in terms of their various permutations but rather in terms of their essential functionality.

A data center is a physical facility where data and computing equipment are stored, enabling central processing, storage, and exchange of data. Modern data center architecture involves planning how switches and servers will connect, typically during the planning and construction phases. This blueprint guides the design and construction of the building, specifying the placement of servers, storage, networking, racks, and resources. It outlines the data center networking architecture, detailing how these components will connect. Additionally, it encompasses the data center security architecture, ensuring secure operations and safeguarding data. Overall, it provides a comprehensive framework for efficient data center operations.

Today’s data centers are becoming much larger and more complex. Because of their size, the hardware requirements vary from workload to workload and even day to day. In addition, some workloads may require more memory capacity or faster processing speed than others so data center optimization becomes necessary.

In such cases, leveraging high-end devices will ensure that the TCO (total cost of ownership) is lower. But because the management and operations staff are so large, this strategy can be costly and ineffective. For this reason, it’s important to choose the right architecture for your organization.

While all data centers use virtualized servers, there are other important considerations for designing a data center. The building’s design must take into account the facilities and premises. The choice of technologies and interactions between the various hardware and software layers will ultimately affect the data center’s performance and efficiency.

For instance, a data center design may need sophisticated fire suppression systems and a control center where staff can monitor server performance and the physical plant. Additionally, a data center should be designed to provide the highest levels of security and privacy.

How to Design a Data Center Architecture

The question of how to design the architecture of data center has a number of answers. Before implementing any new data center technology, owners should first define the performance parameters and establish a financial model. The design of the architecture must satisfy the performance requirements of the business.

Several considerations are necessary before starting the data center construction. First, the data center premises and facility should be considered. Then, the design should be based on the technology selection.  There should be an emphasis on availability. This is often reflected by an operational or Service Level Agreement (SLA). And, of course, the design should be cost-effective.

Another important aspect of data center design is the size of the data center itself. While the number of servers and racks may not be significant, the infrastructure components will require a significant amount of space.

For example, the mechanical and electrical equipment required by a data center will require significant space. Additionally, many organizations will need office space, an equipment yard, and IT equipment staging areas. The design must address these needs before creating a space plan.

When selecting the technology for a data center, the architect should understand the tradeoffs between cost, reliability, and scalability. It should also be flexible enough to allow for the fast deployment and support of new services or applications. Flexibility can provide a competitive advantage in the long run, so careful planning is required. A flexible data center with an advanced architecture that allows for scalability is likely to be more successful.

Considering availability is also essential it should also be secure, which means that it should be able to withstand any attacks and not be vulnerable to malicious attacks.

By using the technologies like ACL (access control list) and IDS (intrusion detection system), the data center architecture should support the business’s mission and the business objectives. The right architecture will not only increase the company’s revenue but will also be more productive.

Data center tiers:

Data centers are rated by tier to indicate expected uptime and dependability:

Tier 1 data centers have a single power and cooling line, as well as few if any, redundancy and backup components. It has a 99.671 percent projected uptime (28.8 hours of downtime annually).

Tier 2 data centers have a single power and cooling channel, as well as some redundant and backup components. It has a 99.741 percent projected uptime (22 hours of downtime annually).

Tier 3 data centers include numerous power and cooling paths, as well as procedures in place to update and maintain them without bringing them offline. It has a 99.982 percent anticipated uptime (1.6 hours of downtime annually).

Tier 4 data centers are designed to be totally fault-tolerant, with redundancy in every component. It has a 99.995 percent predicted uptime (26.3 minutes of downtime annually).

Your service level agreement (SLAs) and other variables will determine which data center tier you require.

In a data center architecture, core infrastructure services should be the priority. The latter should include data storage and network services. Traditional data centers utilize physical components for these functions. In contrast, Platform as a Service (PaaS) does not require a physical component layer.

Nevertheless, both types of technologies need a strong core infrastructure. The latter is the primary concern of most organizations, as it provides the platform for the business. DCaaS and DCIM are also a popular choice among the organizations.

Data Center as a Service (DCaaS) is a hosting service providing physical data center infrastructure and facilities to clients. DCaaS allows clients remote access to the provider’s storage, server and networking resources through a Wide-Area Network (WAN).

The convergence of IT and building facilities functions inside an enterprise is known as data center infrastructure management (DCIM). A DCIM initiative aims to give managers a comprehensive perspective of a data center’s performance so that energy, equipment, and floor space are all used as efficiently as possible.

Data Center Requirements

To achieve operational efficiency, reliability, and scalability, a data center setup must meet stringent requirements. The following are critical considerations:

1. Reliability and Redundancy– Ensuring high performance and uninterrupted services necessitates robust data center redundancy. This includes having redundant power sources, networking infrastructure, and cooling systems. Data center redundancy is crucial to mitigate the risk of downtime and maintain continuous operations.

2. Scalability– With data volumes growing exponentially, data centers must be scalable to accommodate future growth without compromising performance. Scalable infrastructure allows for seamless expansion and adaptation to increasing demands, ensuring long-term operational effectiveness.

3. Security– Data center security is paramount due to the sensitive information stored within these facilities. To protect data integrity and privacy, stringent security measures such as access controls, continuous monitoring, and encryption are essential. Robust data center security protocols help safeguard against breaches and unauthorized access.

4. Efficiency– Optimizing data center efficiency is essential for reducing operational expenses and minimizing environmental impact. Efficient energy use in data centers lowers costs and promotes sustainability. Implementing energy-efficient technologies and practices enhances overall data center efficiency, contributing to a greener operation.

By focusing on data center security, efficiency, and redundancy, organizations can ensure their data centers are well-equipped to handle current and future demands while maintaining high performance and reliability.

Conclusion

Data centers have seen significant transformations in recent years. Data center infrastructure has transitioned from on-premises servers to virtualized infrastructure that supports workloads across pools of physical infrastructure and multi-cloud environments as enterprise IT demands to continue to migrate toward on-demand services.

Two key questions remain the same regardless of which current design strategy is chosen.

• How do you manage computation, storage, and networks that are differentiated and geographically dispersed?
• How do you go about doing it safely?

Because the expense of running your own data center is too expensive and you receive no assistance, add in the cost of your on-site IT personnel once more. DCaaS and DCIM have grown in popularity.

Most organizations will benefit from DCaaS and DCIM, but keep in mind that with DCaaS, you are responsible for providing your own hardware and stack maintenance. As a result, you may require additional assistance in maintaining those.

You get the team to manage your stacks for you with DCIM. The team is responsible for the system’s overall performance, uptime, and needs, as well as its safety and security. You will receive greater support and peace of mind if you partner with the proper solution providers who understand your business and requirements.

If you’re seeking to create your data center and want to maximize uptime and efficiency, The Protected Harbor data center is a secure, hardened DCIM that offers unmatched uptime and reliability for your applications and data. This facility can operate as the brain of your data center, offering unheard-of data center stability and durability.

In addition to preventing outages, it enables your growth while providing superior security against ransomware and other attacks. For more information on how we can help create your data center while staying protected, contact us today.