Here at DCIG we do what many do at this time of year: take time to reflect on the past year. We accomplish this task, in part, by examining which topics piqued reader’s interest this past year. In this case, we use a very simple metric. We look at which blog entries written in 2023 got the most views in 2023. So, presented in alphabetical order exactly like we present the winners listed in our TOP 5 reports, here are DCIG’s TOP 5 Most Read Blog Entries that were written in 2023.
5 Key Backup Solution Features to Protect Against and Recover from Ransomware Attacks
I posted this blog entry on September 28, 2023, just shortly after the attack on the MGM Resorts. I began the blog entry by summarizing some of what was already known about the attack and its source. This synopsis included the hacker(s) suspected of initiating the attack, how the hackers gained access, and their attack flow.
I concluded the blog entry by pointing out that the five features that organizations need to protect against attacks like this already exist. Further, organizations may find these in many of today’s available backup solutions.
However, organizations cannot and should not assume these five features will magically protect them against ransomware attacks. They cannot simply buy and deploy them. Rather, they must purposely and strategically deploy them within their infrastructure. This involves properly configuring them and using them for their intended purpose.
Cyber Security and Resilience Redefining Today’s 100+ Disk-based Backup Target Models
I am unsure what made March and September of 2023 so special, but this was the only DCIG blog entry of 2023 not written in either of those two months. This one, posted on November 9, 2023, provided some insights from DCIG’s forthcoming TOP 5 reports on cyber secure disk-based backup targets.
Until quite recently organizations largely defined disk-based backup targets by three characteristics. How fast they backed up data, their data deduplication ratios, and the data protection protocols they offered and/or supported. While these attributes still matter, organizations increasingly prioritize new cyber security and resilience features when acquiring disk-based backup targets.
This blog entry shared why ransomware has cast a new spotlight on backups in general and backup targets specifically. To meet these new needs, providers of backup targets have significantly upped their game. This has resulted in the latest products having a decided edge over traditional players in this market. This can be seen by the growing number of disk-based backup targets, the increased availability of cyber security features on these solutions, and the new resilience features on these backup targets.
Intelligent Data Management for the 1.8 Exabyte World
Every now and then one sees a factoid that tends to knock you backward a bit. This happened to me earlier this year when I received an email from StrongLink with a file attachment. It contained a screenshot of a file that was 1.8 exabyte in size.
While I suppose having worked in and focused on storage management for over 20 years, I should no longer be surprised by anything. However, seeing a real-world file of that size still knocked me back a bit.
In fact, it led to me posting a blog entry on the topic on March 9, 2023. As it turns out, it caught the attention of other people as well. It became one of DCIG’s TOP 5 most read blog entries of 2023.
In this blog entry, I discussed why managing exabytes of data may arrive sooner than most organizations anticipate. I then went to explain why they need to put in place intelligent data management practices to accommodate managing this much data.
Putting the NIST Cybersecurity Framework into Context
DCIG published this blog entry on September 21, 2023. In it, I (Jerome Wendt) share my thoughts on how IT providers position their products using the NIST cybersecurity framework. I specifically encourage organizations to exercise caution and take time to understand what each IT provider’s support of the NIST Cybersecurity Framework means and how it applies to the solutions they offer.
This blog entry goes on to point out three complications associated with choosing any specific product simply based upon the provider’s claims of compliance with NIST cybersecurity framework. The blog entry concludes with two tasks that organizations should internally perform before selecting any IT provider’s solution.
Safe Assumptions One Can Make About Microsoft 365 SaaS Backup Solutions
This blog entry, also published by me on March 2, 2023, follows somewhat of the same line of thought as the one on the NIST Cybersecurity Framework. In this blog post, I examine why organizations should NOT assume that simply acquiring any Microsoft 365 SaaS backup solution will meet their Microsoft 365 backup needs. Rather, I share my insights on how little commonality exists between competing Microsoft 365 SaaS backup solutions.
I specifically found that organizations could only safely make three assumptions about common features that existed across all Microsoft 365 SaaS backup solutions. Since 25+ such solutions existed, that translates into many more differences than similarities between these products. I conclude this blog entry by observing that organizations can only safely assume these differences between these solutions far outweigh their similarities.
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The Data Center Intelligence Group (DCIG) empowers the IT industry with actionable analysis. DCIG analysts provide informed third-party analysis of various cloud, data protection, and data storage technologies. DCIG’s audiences include C-level executives, IT managers, IT professionals, magazine editors, bloggers, analysts, and providers within the IT and cloud services industry with DCIG reaching millions of these individuals each year through its publications.