Data Centre Magazine December 2023 | Page 129

TECHNOLOGY
Building truly resilient infrastructure Data protection and data security , starting with the data itself , is at the core of resilient infrastructure , according to Caley . Historically , security focuses for businesses and the likes of data centre facilities surrounded preventing attacks . But now , as cyber crimes become more sophisticated , they vary in nature and become increasingly common , which is why Caley is calling for data centres and their operators to be equally as concerned with data recovery as they are with defence .
“ In order to remain protected , organisations must have a consistent approach to data security across all environments and extend security into cloud systems ,” he details .
Caley warns that , if businesses neglect data security and focus on other priorities , the impact is overwhelmingly that they are leaving themselves wide open and in a vulnerable position when it comes to major cyber breaches .
“ This could cause irreparable organisational and reputational damage ,” he cautions . “ It ’ s therefore imperative that companies focus on security to ensure they remain one step ahead of malicious actors which constantly seek new attack methods and exploit various tools and technologies .”
Emerging technologies : Strengthening and weakening defence The likes of AI , for example – although an exciting and emerging technology

“ Data drives everything we do ”

GRANT CALEY CHIEF TECHNOLOGIST UK & I , NETAPP
positioned to streamline and improve a working environment – can be leveraged for the likes of sophisticated attacks resulting in data breaches .
With this in mind , Caley advocates that prioritising diligence when it comes to security is an essential first point of protection and should be a critical ongoing priority for businesses and their respective employee culture .
And looking to the future , Caley envisions that by tackling security head-on and automating controls , data centre managers ’ time and energy will be freed up to focus on what lies ahead .
He professes : “ Automation is vital for data centre security . When taking a solely manual approach , there are many variables that can be missed compromising the security of a business . If a data centre doesn ’ t integrate automation , businesses won ’ t be able to look ahead at the next wave of attack or look to the future for opportunity .
“ In my opinion there isn ’ t enough automation across the data centre . Businesses can ’ t look forward to optimising their processes and ditching the administrative duties that take up time , and they can ’ t benefit from the long-term savings without automation . Driving automation is the primary way to scale the future of data centres , as data grows exponentially .”
Highlighting that data protection safeguards and protects individuals ’
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