With the rise of edge data centres and an increase in cloud-based computing, companies are facing new challenges in end-to-end cybersecurity. To ensure proper protection, data centre teams must now assess both internal processes and strategies used by cloud suppliers.

According to George Senzere, Pre-Sales Manager Anglophone ITD Global, Schneider Electric South Africa, cybersecurity is a constant, low-level conflict, where all infrastructures, systems and networks are constantly probed for weaknesses.

“Data centre profiles are quickly evolving. Protection requirements have expanded beyond the core, as edge computing adoption and the number of network nodes continues to grow. These shifts are changing the type of vigilance required, as criminals and bad behaviour never stop.

“To address this complicated task, start with a strategic cybersecurity plan that addresses both internal and external factors to prevent and mitigate cybersecurity attacks. This will take into account internal policies but will also consider how chosen providers will ensure a safe environment to match the organisation’s security profile.

“With data centre assets now geographically dispersed, edge network end points make it impractical to attempt to replicate an on-premise ‘cybersecurity’ approach at every location. In distributed environments, the cybersecurity software that manages and monitors the infrastructure will sit on cloud platforms.

“This presents several new challenges for data centre managers, who retain responsibility for the security of distributed assets. This group has experience in dealing with third-party developed cybersecurity solutions deployed on-premise and optimised for particular environments. However, data centre managers tend to get nervous when information about the status of their facilities resides outside their data centre. Therefore, the suggestion that they should use cloud-based, cybersecurity platforms to monitor and protect distributed, mission-critical assets often sit uncomfortably with their command and control, safety-first culture.

 

Adopting best practices

“Operations teams know that robust cybersecurity is built on policy, process and people. These become even more important when implementing cloud-hosted solutions. Getting the most from cloud cybersecurity platforms requires new user behaviour. For data centre operators, this means facing up to a few key questions around compliance, access control, data transport, data location and data privacy. Those using cloud-hosted cybersecurity solutions, should consider:

  1. Security policies that have been adapted for the cloud
  2. Multi-factor authentication is always used
  3. All security patches are current
  4. Data privacy and GDPR compliance responsibilities have been fully met
  5. Third party penetrating testing is run regularly
  6. Inbound and outbound systems are monitored
  7. A DevSecOps approach is embraced internally and by your cloud provider (DevSecOps arose from DevOps to include information technology security, as a fundamental aspect in all stages of software development)

 

Ongoing battle

“The number of attacks for financial gain or malicious intent will continue to rise. Thus, when choosing your cloud platform partner, due diligence has never been more important. As the number of services and critical applications grow at the edge, metadata that describes the condition of your edge data centres becomes even more valuable. Ensuring that cloud-based cybersecurity of edge data centre assets offers the appropriate protection cannot be left to chance.

“For Schneider Electric, cybersecurity is mission critical, and that is why our cloud-based DCIM platform incorporates best practices to ensure cybersecurity protection. Working with the right partners ensures that your cybersecurity strategy will be focused on what matters most: increasing visibility, improving resiliency, and protecting data centres from the core to the edge,” concludes Senzere.