Many of our customers have come to us with questions about HIPAA-compliant cloud storage. There’s a lot of marketing rhetoric online about HIPAA-certified Cloud Service Providers (CSPs) and other types of certified providers for that matter. First of all, there is no such thing as an official HIPAA certification. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the organization that enforces HIPAA, does not provide HIPAA certifications, nor does it require them. This doesn’t mean that a CSP cannot be HIPAA-compliant, only that HHS does not guarantee their compliance. Also, no matter what type of certification a CSP claims to have, compliance is ultimately up to you, the “covered entity” or health services provider.
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According to former NSA director Keith Alexander, cybercrime is the greatest transfer of wealth in history. With the rapid increase in the frequency of cyberattacks year after year, it’s no wonder many companies are turning to cyber insurance (also called cybercrime insurance or cyber coverage) to help mitigate losses from cyberattacks, fraud, espionage and other cyber threats. However, cybercrime insurance is still relatively new, making it risky for both the insurer and the insured. There are also several expenses related to cybercrime that insurance will not cover. Be sure to consider the following before making the decision to begin policy shopping.
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Companies often lack essential network documentation, and they don’t know where to begin with designing and optimizing their networks to align with business goals. That’s why our network engineers provided network assessments to colocation customers that expressed a need for it. Because of the improvements our network engineering team made for these first customers, the team saw the value in the contribution they could make to our customers’ IT strategies and achievement of business goals overall. As a result, we have launched network assessment as one of our official services. This is a service we offer to colocation customers and non-customers alike. Our network assessment service and network documentation provide a real transfer of knowledge through a consultative approach.
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According to IDG Research, costs associated with ransomware totaled $209 million in the first quarter of this year alone. One factor contributing to the rapid increase in ransomware and DDoS threats for ransom (also known as ransom DoS or RDos) is that people and companies are paying these ransoms, allowing cyber criminals to establish a steady stream of income. What would your company do if faced with a DDoS or ransomware threat? Here are four good reasons paying up shouldn’t be an option.
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We are excited to announce the construction of Texas 2, Data Foundry’s fifth Texas data center. Texas 2 will accompany Texas 1 on the Data Ranch at our headquarters in Austin, and will be 325,000 square feet upon completion of the final phase. Texas 2 will provide retail and wholesale colocation space, and it is designed to support high density deployments up to 50 kW per cabinet.
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An article posted on Data Center Knowledge back in May states, “It’s clear that the cloud should be part of your IT strategy, even if your team has yet to determine how to leverage it.” Data Foundry recognizes the advantages cloud services offer, and as a result, we have added Cloud Services to our managed services offering.
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Data centers that provide colocation, also known as multi-tenant data centers or MTDCs, have evolved to offer much more than just space for rent and installation assistance. As an Internet Service Provider and an operator-owned company, customer service has always been at the forefront of Data Foundry’s offering. We have always provided a consultative approach to guide our customers toward an infrastructure setup that is in their best interest. As organizations large and small shift to the cloud for storage and the use of applications, there is a greater need for interconnectivity, network management and security services on behalf of the data center. We have evolved to offer services in all of these areas, and we consider ourselves our customers’ IT partner.
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In a 2015 survey by Raytheon and the Ponemon Institute, only 22% of participants said that their organization’s IT leadership briefs the board on cybersecurity strategy. Furthermore, only 14% say that their organization’s security leader has a direct reporting relationship with the CEO. In a separate poll by PwC, one-third of corporate board directors said they aren’t sufficiently or at all engaged in overseeing/understanding the company’s annual IT budget, which is an important component of cyberattack prevention. Here’s why it’s past time to get the board on board with cyberattack prevention and how to get started.
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This year has been hectic for the airline industry with three major airlines suffering computer outages since January: Delta, Southwest and JetBlue. Computer outages, or downtime, can cost major corporations several thousands of dollars by the minute. Southwest Airlines CEO Gary Kelly admitted their recent outage will cost the company between $28 and $54 million. As IT people, we at Data Foundry understand everything that can break will, at some point or another. However, we took a look (as good of a look as an outsider can take) into the costs and causes of these recent outages, and our experts had a few thoughts on how these catastrophic events may have been prevented.
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There are a number of best practices data center operators should follow to maintain the ideal environment for IT equipment, such as monitoring humidity levels and atmospheric corrosion, replacing dust filters in a timely manner, using chemical filtration systems, limiting foot traffic and using tak mats or sticky mats. In addition to following these best practices, data center operators should conduct an annual contamination assessment and do a thorough cleaning to ensure that data center clean room standards are met.
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