The global data center market is forecasted to grow at a compound annual growth rate of over 2% between 2019 and 2025. By 2024, revenues in the U.S. alone are… Read Blog

Protection Lags Behind While Data Center Industry Booms

The global data center market is forecasted to grow at a compound annual growth rate of over 2% between 2019 and 2025. By 2024, revenues in the U.S. alone are expected to reach over $69 billion.

Unfortunately, the only thing growing faster than the data center market is the array of threats it faces. As the need for an expanding workforce in the industry grows, so does the potential for internal attacks. And, with the tremendous explosion of active IoT devices (26.66 billion in 2019 up from 7 billion in 2018), the sheer number of possibilities for bad actors to pursue is almost incomprehensible. 

As the ramping up of hyper-scale cloud computing (only quickened by the COVID-19 pandemic) brings changes to data center infrastructure, decision-makers for enterprise data centers must make investing in top-of-the-line physical and cybersecurity their number one priority.

The Security Problem That Exists Today

Even though consumer data is the number one currency in the world today, data centers remain embarrassingly vulnerable to attack. 

Why? Although physical security and cybersecurity are intrinsically connected, many organizations continue to silo their security systems. With separate assets, teams, and resources, organizations lack a holistic view of security threats targeting their enterprise. 

Keeping physical security separate from your cybersecurity means you’re using outdated technology to try to protect the infrastructure that houses your data. CCTV and armed guards do nothing to prevent tapping attempts. In fact, without using the kind of innovative technologies usually reserved for cybersecurity to protect the physical layer, your entire network is left vulnerable. 

Attacks are more likely to succeed and lead to the compromising of sensitive data, proprietary information, disruption of service, and economic damage when a data center lacks an encompassing understanding of organizational security. Having multiple, separate security systems also results in more downtime if you do face a threat because the systems are not in communication to quickly identify and correct problems. Worse, unsecured IoT devices can even endanger human lives.

Bringing Physical and Cyber Security Together

The idea of the “convergence” of physical and cybersecurity has recently gained momentum in the security industry. Over the past year especially, awareness about the necessity of a holistic approach to physical and cybersecurity has expanded. Urged by the publishing of Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Convergence Action Guide by the U.S. Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency as well as by the COVID-19 pandemic, data centers are scrambling to bring OT and IT together. 

Yet, the former lack of attention and experience regarding holistic security within the industry means few service providers have the knowledge and resources necessary to complete this monumental task successfully.

A Real Solution to Physical Security

“Convergence” may seem like a relatively new buzzword, but the idea has existed for some time and is known as “Unified Cyber-Physical Protection (UCP™)”. 

Pioneered by CyberSecure IPS, UCP™ is an approach to security that fills in the gaps that other solutions ignore by bringing the physical layer under the realm of cyber protection. CyberSecure IPS developed leading-edge fiber optic security technologies due to extensive work in the government and military sectors. They earned the experience and knowledge required to address blind spots that plague commercial industries.

Favored by top enterprises and national governments, CyberSecure IPS’s solutions consist of patented hardware and software innovations that work together to protect the most critical infrastructures and assets around the globe.

IT and IoT networks are protected and monitored by installing state-of-the-art sensors at every physical access point in both Inside and Outside Plant environments. The software part of the solution, Infrastructure Monitoring System (IMS™), collects real-time data from the sensors in order to monitor and identify physical disruption or tampering and prevent outages.

CYBER-PHYSICAL PROTECTION FOR DATA CENTERS

The CyberSecure IPS solutions bridge the gap between CIOs, CISOs, and their teams. The IMS™ software allows one team/person or multiple teams to monitor and manage the security of every access point and asset, inside the plant and outside the plant, on one real-time dashboard from any location.

Outside Plant Protection

When paired with our patented hardware components, our ruggedized sensors provide precise, location-specific information. For example, the Sentinel Focus CS™ is able to detect diverse events over long distances and provide underground perimeter protection – including detecting the presence of moving vehicles, digging or movement. Sentinel Focus CS™ is precise enough to distinguish nuisances from real threats, preventing unnecessary alarms. It is also able to detect attempts to cut, climb, or breach fence lines. 

Another component, the Interceptor CS™, provides OSP Utility Pathway Protection by safeguarding sensitive communication lines from intrusion and detecting manipulation, tap, and cable damage. 

Zero power manhole sensors, supported by the Cybersensor Controller, are able to protect OSP Fiber Pathways by detecting open and close conditions or damage and providing high-speed monitoring and real-time alerts to the IMS™.

Inside Plant Protection

Our hardware and software components are built and improved with feedback from Fortune 500 companies who require cutting-edge -and discreet- protection of their massive networks. Its Inside Plant protection capabilities are ideal for data halls, “Meet Me” Rooms, demarcation points, and distribution points.

Spotlight CS™ and Vanguard CS™ secure the ISP Conduit while providing automated periodic testing of fibers. Zero power Perimeter Cage Sensors, Cage Doors, Rack Door sensors, and Lockbox Sensors detect open/close conditions while Floor Sensors track personnel movement. 

CyberTag™ RFID Protection tracks data center assets for near real-time inventory and unauthorized removals. 

UCP for inside plant protection also offers camera integration via dry contacts, API or IMS Camerica View. 

Pathfinder™ also helps data centers grow by monitoring cable pathways for weight and fill ratio, providing valuable information about capacity and assisting in new cable buildouts by notifying engineers before limits are exceeded.

TOTAL VISIBILITY OF YOUR ENTIRE FACILITY ON ONE DASHBOARD

Together, the entire suite of solutions provides security executives with a comprehensive view of their entire organization.

The CyberSecure IPS IMS™ (Infrastructure Monitoring System) is sophisticated enough to discern false alarms and provide real-time analysis of the severity of any intrusion through a real-time dashboard in a single pane of glass that’s remotely accessible – so executives can keep an eye on assets in co-locations anytime, anywhere. 

This level of precision saves first responder man-hours, while continuous surveillance reduces staffing needs. Our solutions eliminate the lack of communication and visibility between separate teams that hampers collaboration and coordination. It is also penetration-tested and fully compliant with NIST data center physical security requirements. 

Our security solutions can be installed into existing facilities and infrastructure and require minimal installation modification for retrofit scenarios. These cost reductions, not to mention increased protection against the loss of invaluable data, ease the strain on bloated data center budgets.

Customizable, scalable, and backed by long-term support, CyberSecure IPS offers tested solutions for enterprise data centers seeking to protect invaluable data in an increasingly dangerous world. To learn more about how CyberSecure IPS can help your organization click here to get more information.