As organizations face increasingly sophisticated cyber threats, particularly ransomware attacks targeting storage systems, implementing comprehensive cybersecurity measures has become critical. Cloudian’s HyperStore 8.2 addresses these challenges by aligning with the NIST Cybersecurity Framework, providing robust protection for unstructured data storage.
The NIST Cybersecurity Framework, developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology, provides a comprehensive set of guidelines and best practices for managing cybersecurity risk. (Read the NIST document here.) This framework has become the de facto standard for organizations worldwide, offering a structured approach to security that is both flexible and scalable. The framework’s five core functions—Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond, and Recover—along with its governance components, create a complete cycle of cybersecurity activities that organizations can implement to improve their security posture and protect against evolving threats.
These are the specific ways Cloudian HyperStore supports this security framework:
Identify
The first step in cybersecurity is identifying potential threats and vulnerabilities. HyperStore version 8.2 includes advanced monitoring capabilities through its point-in-time view of buckets, allowing administrators to track and assess the state of their storage environment. An upcoming release will enhance these capabilities with a comprehensive Data and MD management facility, providing deeper insights into potential security risks.
Protect
Protection against cyber threats is implemented through multiple layers of security controls. HyperStore includes S3 Object Lock, a critical feature that prevents unauthorized modification of data. This is complemented by HyperStore Bucket Backup, and object overwrite protection, providing additional layers of data protection.
Future releases will introduce features such as MFA delete functionality, and sophisticated “air gap” protection, creating a secure barrier between object-locked buckets and potential threats. Functionality will include automated response mechanisms to block active attacks.
Detect
Detection capabilities are crucial for identifying attacks early on. HyperStore 8.2 specifically focuses on recognizing and alerting administrators about common forms of attacks. Future enhancements will expand these capabilities to detect various attack patterns and automatically disable compromised attacker credentials, providing a rapid response to potential threats.
Respond
The response framework in HyperStore is designed to quickly address detected threats. A notable example is its handling of ransomware attacks that attempt to exploit S3 CopyObject with SSE-C encryption, as recently reported in The Register. HyperStore now automatically recognizes and blocks these attempts by default and notifies an administrator of the incident.
By ingesting HyperStore’s Syslog output into a SIEM system, security teams can have even better visibility into events on the system and shorten their Mean Time To Detect (MTTD).
Recover
Recovery capabilities are centered around the Point-in-Time View of buckets feature in HyperStore 8.2. This functionality enables organizations to quickly restore data to a known good state following an incident, minimizing downtime and data loss. The system maintains secure backups and provides efficient recovery mechanisms to ensure business continuity.
Govern
The governance framework ties all these elements together, ensuring comprehensive security management across the storage environment. This includes policy management, access controls, and continuous monitoring of security measures.
HyperStore provides Identification and Access Management (IAM) features, allowing for granular control over access and permissions following the “least privilege” principle, as well as improved auditing capabilities. The IDP integration ensures central management of users and elevated authentication standards.
Conclusion
Cloudian HyperStore demonstrates a comprehensive approach to storage security, implementing the NIST Cybersecurity Framework. By addressing each framework component with specific features and capabilities, HyperStore provides organizations with the tools they need to protect their data against modern cyber threats, with the latest addition being protection from ransomware attacks targeting unstructured storage solutions.
As noted by Gartner in 2023, this approach to Cyberstorage represents a crucial evolution in storage security, providing “active defense technologies that identify, protect, detect, respond and recover from ransomware attacks on unstructured storage solutions.” With both current features and planned enhancements, Cloudian HyperStore continues to strengthen its position as a leader in secure enterprise storage solutions.
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