Cyber Security

Logpoint and SecurValue to secure organisations in Southern Europe

Logpoint has announced a partnership with SecurValue, providing cyber security services to help customers detect and respond to cyber threats. Armed with its SIEM+SOAR solution, SecurValue can offer robust threat detection and response, real-time data analysis, early detection of data breaches, and easy implementation of compliance requirements. “We’re happy to partner with SecurValue to help organisations strengthen security posture and cyber resilience. They share our vision for conducting long-term business in Southern Europe,” says Christian Pijoulat, Regional Director SEMEA at Logpoint. “SecurValue has a tailored approach to their customers, based on skilled cyber security professionals and trusted technologies, and we’re proud that Logpoint’s solution is now a part of that.” The Southern European market is preparing for the local implementations of the Network Information Security (NIS)2 directive from the European Union to increase cyber resilience across the EU. The directive will expand the existing regulations within data and cyber security, introducing stricter requirements for a broad range of sectors. Non-compliance and failure to report incidents will result in significant fines and sanctions. “We’re excited to add Logpoint to our portfolio to offer our customers improved security capabilities, streamlined operations, and enhanced compliance adherence,” says Fabio Cagna Vallino, Cyber Security BU Director at SecurValue. “CEOs across the region are becoming aware that cyber threats are a top concern and that investments in cyber security are essential to minimise cyber risk. Especially small and medium-sized organisations are struggling with the lack of cyber security professionals trained to handle threats effectively, which leaves them at a major risk of exposure.” SecurValue will offer the Logpoint SIEM+SOAR solution, which analyses security incidents and automates the investigation of threats, improving cyber intelligence, reducing cyber security risk, and accelerating threat detection, investigation, and response. SecurVlaue will also use Logpoint Director, a platform that helps MSSPs and MDRs update, manage, and monitor large and multi-tenant deployments.

Aspire expands its footprint with the acquisition of Cloud Cover IT

Aspire Technology Solutions, a cyber security and modern workplace managed service provider, has announced the acquisition of Cloud Cover IT, a managed service provider based in Glasgow. This is an important strategic acquisition for Aspire, aligning with its vision for expansion into new UK regions and expanding its portfolio of cutting-edge technology solutions.  As part of this investment, Cloud Cover IT will become a part of the Aspire group, and its software development and business applications division will be rebranded as 'Flyte.' The company will be well-positioned to make ongoing investments, better serving its growing customer base by extending its business applications offerings. Cloud Cover IT has been delivering IT support and digital transformation solutions for over 11 years. It prides itself on providing excellent service to its customers. As part of the Aspire group, it has access to the full range of Aspire products, solutions and expertise, offering greater benefits to its customers. Chris Fraser, CEO and Founder of Aspire says, “Our acquisition of Cloud Cover IT marks a new and exciting chapter for both companies. This move will strengthen our presence in Scotland, positioning us in a thriving market. The Cloud Cover team will become an integral part of the Aspire group, and together, we believe we can grow significantly in this key strategic market. I'm excited to see the opportunities accelerate as we offer customers, present and future, the innovative solutions that they need in a changing world. Exciting times lie ahead.” Lance Gauld, Founder and MD at Cloud Cover IT, comments on the synergy between the two companies, “Multiple factors drew us to Aspire; they are an outstanding company. The alignment between our organisations and how we complement each other is evident. We share similar values in our approach towards our people, customers, and objectives. This partnership is not merely a merger with a large IT company; it is a collaboration with a leading UK technology provider that understands us. As part of the Aspire group, we can grow our footprint further and broaden our offerings with access to more expertise, resources and an extensive portfolio of solutions to help our customers drive their businesses forward.” With a 17-year legacy in the technology sector, Aspire has experienced significant growth, serving over 1,700 customers and nurturing a dedicated team of around 250 experts. It has a notable footprint across the UK, including offices in Gateshead, London, Leeds and Teesside. Aspire has earned a reputation for delivering leading solutions across cyber security, cloud, managed services, connectivity and unified communications.

Implementing an effective cyber security strategy in data centres

A robust, scalable and efficient cyber security solution is of critical importance to Colt Data Centre Services (Colt DCS). When looking for a partner to bolster its threat detection and response capabilities, Colt DCS turned to Armor to provide a uniform cyber security platform across all its multinational sites, implementing Armor’s XDR + SOC solution, as well as its VAPT programme to continually identify potential flaws. Background Operating 16 data centres in seven cities across Europe and Asia Pacific, Colt DCS has been designing, building and operating hyperscale and large enterprise data centres for more than 25 years. Like all hyperscale data centre solution providers, Colt DCS’ business model is dependent on customer confidence and being able to convince potential customers that their confidential data, and the data of their own customers, is in the safest of hands. The vast amounts of sensitive and valuable information stored, processed and transmitted by Colt DCS for some of the world’s largest organisations make it a potentially attractive target for cyber attacks. Therefore, effecting a robust and highly assured cyber security platform is essential to its operations and ongoing success. Challenge As part of its commitment to delivering a sustainable hyperscale future for its clients, Colt DCS undertook a thorough evaluation of its cyber security posture. The business found itself reliant on a multitude of disparate solutions, making threat monitoring and response less efficient. This fragmentation also meant that its IT teams did not have a single view of the threat landscape and associated vulnerabilities, instead having to sift through data from various vendors, which reduced response efficiency. Guy Gibson, IT Infrastructure Manager at Colt DCS, says, “What we realised is that we were often ‘reactive’ to threats. We had access to a huge amount of data, but no single view. It felt disjointed and that our current approach lacked structure and control.” Greater vulnerability assessment and penetration testing (VAPT) was also an area it identified for improvement, requiring continuous monitoring and testing of the environment in order to expose potential faults and security weaknesses. Guy Gibson explains, “At the heart of what we were trying to achieve was more efficient threat detection and response, seeking a single source of truth solution that would provide us with greater global threat intelligence, control, testing and guidance, whilst also facilitating large scale growth when required. “We needed to work with someone who really understood the threat detection landscape and who could provide a solution that offered zero downtime to facilitate business continuity. The solution would also have to be compliant to data storage regulations across every country we are located in, and crucially, allow us to retain ownership and control of all data. In essence we needed security delivered in an unobtrusive way.” The cyber security team at Colt DCS was also looking for the reassurance of 24/7, 365 days a year platform security, as well as a trusted supplier and subject matter expert who could provide guidance, training and knowledge to its teams, helping them to grow. “We wanted to learn and improve, so trust, communication and seamless integration between the new provider and our Incident Management Team (IMT) was also a must,” Guy continues, “focusing on detecting and resolving Priority 2 (P2) incidents or higher with a well-defined process for incident resolution.” The solution With all challenges and concerns identified, Colt DCS initiated a search for a cyber security partner who could provide an effective solution across its multinational sites. Armor immediately impressed with its delivery capabilities, technical expertise and the comprehensive solution it proposed to simplify the detection and remediation of cyber security-based threats. Guy explains, “We were highly impressed with the solution proposed by Armor. Other vendors/platforms were considered, but Armor came out top in terms of the technical solution, delivery and the flexible capabilities it offered.” Armor project managed the implementation of Microsoft Sentinel, Azure’s cloud-native security information and event management (SIEM) system, as part of its Extended Threat Detection and Response (XDR) function to correlate logs and telemetry data from all sources, providing a complete view for threat identification. A 24/7 Security Operation Centre (SOC) added an additional layer of cyber security expertise to Colt DCS’ defence, enabling swift threat response and guiding remediation efforts effectively.  As part of the XDR+SOC deployment, Armor configured each of the following custom and native log sources: Azure AD: Provides insights into audit and sign-in logs Azure Activity: Provides an overview of subscription level events Azure WAF: Provides Web Application Firewall logs Azure Firewall: Provides network security and application rule logs Azure SQL Database: Provides audit and diagnostic logs Azure Storage Account: Provides audited and diagnostic logs Microsoft 365 Defender: Monitors and logs logons, file, process and registry events Microsoft Defender for Endpoint: Provides security alerts on network endpoints such as laptops, tablets, routers etc. Additionally included in the solution were Armor’s advanced: Analytics Rule Library – including correlation alerting and threat-hunting rules Security dashboards and widgets Configuration of Open Source and Commercial Threat Intelligence Feeds An ongoing VAPT programme was also deployed to identify any potential security flaws and enhance its DPS’ overall security position. As a second stage to this project, Colt DCS is now ingesting a new telemetry as part of its XDR solution – Microsoft’s Defender for IOT.  This will enhance its security further by protecting and monitoring internet-connected devices and endpoints within the data centre infrastructure to prevent cyber threats and vulnerabilities. Guy explains, “The implementation of the solutions was well-managed and required minimal input from our internal teams. Not only was it straightforward, but the benefits were felt almost instantly. The solution from Armor has allowed us to have a better oversight of our global operations and assess the cyber landscape more efficiently. “I haven’t received a single complaint from my team. Everyone sees Armor as a force for good. Armor’s solution has allowed us to shift our mindset internally, we are more proactive and focused. We can spend more time on access control rather than trying to process and understand vast quantities of data, which had become the norm. “There have been numerous threats and vulnerabilities picked up since the implementation of Armor’s system. Issues that I think could have posed a real risk had our teams not been able to detect and remediate them. One example was the detection of a compromised email account which had the potential to be used for malicious means if not resolved swiftly. With this new solution we were able to be informed accordingly and take immediate remediation steps.” Shortly after the implementation of the Armor solution, Colt DCS expanded capacity across ten of its sites. Guy adds, “Having implemented the XDR solution ahead of this expansion undeniably meant that this process was much swifter. It was far less concerning to all involved than it would’ve been using our previous approach. “Overall, the entire solution has helped us to achieve every single objective we set out to achieve on this journey, making the assessment of the cyber landscape a lot simpler for our team, threat detection and response quicker and more efficient, whilst continually facilitating our expansion.” The wins Unified cyber security provision Greater threat visibility Minimised false positives and reduced alert fatigue Simplified and faster incident response Reduction in people hours to detect and manage threats Elimination of threats before they cause damage Improved global oversight across Colt DCS’ locations Implemented with zero downtime and full business continuity experienced Enhanced access control Compliant with data storage regulations across every location Retained ownership and control of all data Accessible guidance, training and knowledge support

Research reveals that 95% of security leaders are calling for AI cyber regulations

Research from RiverSafe has revealed that 95% of businesses are urgently advocating for AI cyber regulations, ahead of November’s AI Safety Summit. The report, titled 'AI Unleashed: Navigating Cyber Risks Report', conducted by Censuswide, revealed the attitudes of 250 cyber security leaders towards the impact of AI on cyber security. Three in four businesses (76% of surveyed businesses) revealed that the implementation of AI within their operations has been halted due to the substantial cyber risks associated with this technology. Security concerns have also prompted 22% of organisations to prohibit their staff from using AI chatbots, highlighting the deep-rooted apprehension regarding AI's potential vulnerabilities. To manage risks, two-thirds (64%) of respondents have increased their cyber budgets this year, demonstrating a commitment to bolstering their cyber security defences. Suid Adeyanju, CEO at RiverSafe, says, "While AI has many benefits for businesses, it is clear that cyber security leaders are facing the brunt of the risks. AI-enabled attacks can increase the complexity of security breaches, exposing organisations to data incidents, and we still have not explored the full extent of the risks that AI can pose. Rushing into AI adoption without first prioritising security is a perilous path, so striking a delicate balance between technological advancement and robust cyber security is paramount." Two thirds of businesses (63%) expect a rise in data loss incidents, while one in five (18%) respondents admitted that their businesses had suffered a serious cyber breach this year, emphasising the urgency of robust cyber security measures. A link to the full report can be found here.

FDM Group and ISACA to boost cyber training programme

FDM Group has announced a partnership with ISACA, a global professional association, to boost its cyber training credentials. ISACA has over 170,000 members and is recognised for its expertise in information security, governance, assurance, risk, privacy and quality. Under the new agreement, FDM employees will benefit from its cyber training, with access to ISACA-approved resources, including online learning tools. The deal will allow FDM to enhance its in-house cyber security credentials, offering the latest technical expertise to its clients. The company has plans to ramp up its cyber security training courses, aiming to equip hundreds of new consultants every year as part of its technical operations programme. Andy Brown, Chief Commercial Officer, FDM Group, says, “Getting access to the latest cyber security expertise is a top priority for every business, and our partnership with ISACA will enable FDM to bring the very highest standards of service and skills to the market. We are very pleased to be working alongside such a prestigious organisation to equip the next generation with world-leading security expertise.” Jeff Angle, Senior Director, Academic and Workforce Development, ISACA, says, “FDM Group is widely recognised as a leading global provider of highly skilled IT experts. We are very excited to be teaming up with such an extensive workforce, sharing knowledge, best practice and industry expertise to further enhance their offering in such a crucial area.”

Neterra launches Startup Accelerator program

Neterra has initiated Startup Accelerator program with the aim of nurturing and supporting start-ups. Under this program, it is providing complimentary or substantially reduced services encompassing cloud, colocation, connectivity and cyber security. The neterra.cloud offering is built on cutting-edge Intel(R) Xeon(R) Platinum processors, offering unlimited data traffic and scalable enterprise-class storage solutions. This package also includes free backup, disaster recovery solutions, and DDoS protection for the initial six months. In a bid to further assist innovative start-ups, it grants access to colocation services in its Tier III+ data centres, including EU based Sofia Data Center 1 (SDC 1), Sofia Data Center 2 (SDC 2), SDC Stolnik, and SDC Ruse, coupled with their high-quality carrier-grade connectivity and global internet exchange through the NetIX platform. For the first six months, Neterra covers the expenses, while start-ups are responsible for their electricity costs. Following this initial period, the global telecom extends discounted colocation services starting at starting at 12 euros/1U rack unit/month. Additionally, Neterra is extending consultancy services to program beneficiaries, offering expertise in network architecture, hardware and software recommendations, configuration, best practices, and managed services for cloud, application servers, hosting providers, and more. The current start-up support program is a continuation of its longstanding commitment to assisting start-ups, a tradition that has been upheld since the company's inception nearly three decades ago. Back then, it played a pivotal role in helping numerous internet providers launch and prosper.  In more recent times, Neterra has demonstrated its dedication to supporting start-ups, as exemplified by its involvement with ucha.se, an online learning platform. Founder of ucha.se, Darin Madzharov, crossed paths with Neven Dilkov, Founder of Neterra, through a mentoring program aimed at nurturing and guiding young talents. In the early stages of development, it extended its support by offering complimentary services during the initial months.

Servecentric generates €6.6m in revenues from international markets

Servecentric has announced that it has generated revenues of €6.6 million from international markets over the last two years. This includes new deals and renewals from customers across Europe, the US and India. This Servecentric growth – which represents a 25% increase compared to the previous two-year period – is being driven by increasing demand for data centre colocation services, underpinned by adoption of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) applications and cyber security services. The company is also seeing increased demand for cloud repatriation solutions, as more organisations choose to migrate workloads from the public cloud back to privately owned infrastructure. With uptick among customers in the SaaS, cyber security, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) services sectors, Servecentric is anticipating further business growth across Europe, the US and India in 2024 and has plans to enter new markets in Asia during this time. The company continues to build out its cloud offering, having added Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) to its portfolio. This enables it to support developers with out-of-the-box cloud development platforms. In addition, the organisation has enhanced its support for Intel Software Guard Extensions (SGX) to facilitate confidential computing and safeguard data. Brian Roe, CEO, Servecentric, says, “We have enjoyed significant growth across international markets over the last two years, even as the global IT market began to retrench and consolidate following the pandemic. We have seen particular demand for our colocation services, as enterprises are adopting hybrid approaches to infrastructure and colocation offers the choice, resilience, and high levels of connectivity required. “However, we’re also seeing an increasing trend of customers opting to move services from the cloud, and migrate company workloads back to self-owned infrastructure. Following the race to digitise, companies are now examining their IT strategies and realising that the cloud is not a one-size-fits-all solution and may not necessarily be the best fit for their requirements. “We’re looking forward to continuing to develop our suite of data centre services and build on our valued relationships with customers in Ireland and internationally – enabling them to capitalise on the capabilities of cloud and colocation with custom-built solutions that meet their specific business needs.”

Logpoint and METCLOUD to tackle cyber security challenges

Logpoint has announced a partnership with METCLOUD in the UK to address fundamental cyber security challenges for organisations, as the threat landscape worsens and cyber security expertise becomes increasingly scarce. METCLOUD will offer Logpoint Converged SIEM, including SIEM, SOAR, UEBA, AgentX, and Business Critical Security (BCS) technologies, to empower customers to efficiently manage, identify and remediate cyber threats across the business landscape.  “Logpoint’s solutions give us a greater breadth of capabilities around predictive and preventative analytics, and management and insights across the technology landscape. Logpoint has a unique offering with BCS for SAP, enabling us to address the significant SAP ERP market,” says Ian Vickers, CEO at METCLOUD. “SAP customers account for 87% of total global commerce, which is an enticing target for cyber criminals. Furthermore, the rapid adoption of AI/ML, IOT, OT, VR, digital twins, robotics and automation makes for a more connected world and as such significantly increases the risks of cyber attacks.” METCLOUD is providing Logpoint Converged SIEM and support services via its private and hybrid cloud offering. Logpoint’s cyber security platform protects the entire business by providing comprehensive threat detection, investigation and response across clients, servers, network systems, cloud workloads and business-critical applications​. In addition, METCLOUD has developed its own AI and data analytics services that integrate with Logpoint converged SIEM to further accelerate the speed of threat detection and remediation. “We’re excited about the synergies that the partnership between METCLOUD and Logpoint brings to market. The ability for mid-market organisations to consume SIEM-as-a-Service with SOAR capabilities included is valuable because it speeds up threat detection and remediation and this sector tends to lack the expertise, resources and experience required,” says Jesper Zerlang, CEO at Logpoint. “For larger organisations that are likely to have well established SOC capabilities in-house, Logpoint BCS for SAP is a unique, enhanced security offering that adds more capabilities to existing teams.” Logpoint has a range of customers in the UK, spanning the public sector and industries like finance, manufacturing, defence, and retail. By converging SIEM, SOAR, UEBA, endpoint security, and BCS technologies into a cyber security operations platform. The platform is available on-prem, in private cloud, and as SaaS.

Cyber attacks reach fever pitch in Q2 2023

Zayo Group Holdings has announced its annual Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) insights report, analysing DDoS attack activity and impact across industries in the first half of 2023.   The global landscape of increasing digitisation, political unrest and the emergence of widespread adoption of work from home, have all contributed to an increase in DDoS attacks, which jumped 200% in H1 2023 compared to the full year 2022.   Key findings in brief: Rapid acceleration of attacks: There was a 314% increase in overall attacks from the first half of 2022 to the first half of 2023. But that’s putting it lightly—in some industries, the growth was over 1,300%. Q2 2023 reached a fever pitch: As attackers continue to exploit the sophistication of AI and automation, there was a 387% increase in attack activity from Q1 to Q2 of this year alone.  Industries under fire:Telecommunications companies were a prime target for attackers due to the critical role telecom providers play in providing communication and internet services. The industry saw the most frequent attacks, accounting for roughly half of the total attack volume, with more than 37,000 attacks in the first half of 2023. Education, which had the highest frequency of attacks in the first half of 2022, was just behind the telecommunications industry. Cloud and SaaS companies also saw a significant increase in the frequency of attacks from the first half of 2022 to the first half of 2023. Retail, telecommunications and media companies experienced the largest attacks, with an average attack size of 3Gbps across all three verticals, which is a large enough attack to take down one to two offices depending on the company size. The largest aggregate attack, against the telecom sector, was 978Gbps. Comparatively, in 2022, telecommunications and government experienced the largest attacks.  The government sector experienced the longest attacks of any sector, a change from healthcare in 2022. Across all industries, the average duration of attacks increased by 216% from Q1 to Q2, with the finance industry seeing the largest leap from 41min to 108min.  Why it matters: DDoS attacks are the most common cyber attack against an organisation’s online presence. These are deliberate attacks in which a target’s internet circuit is flooded with fake or illegitimate traffic to prevent true user traffic from passing. Even small attacks can cause hours of downtime, resulting in immense costs for businesses, including lost money, time, customers and reputation.  No matter the attack frequency, duration, or size, unprotected organisations experienced an average cost of $200,000 per DDoS attack, according to HubSpot. Even small businesses are hit hard, with average costs of $120,000 to recover. “When your business will get hit by a DDoS attack is a game of probability,” says Anna Claiborne, SVP of Packet and Product Software Engineering at Zayo. “With a huge rise in attacks in 2023 and more attacks over 100Gbps, the odds are not in your favour. While there are a myriad of statistics on the cost of remediating a DDoS attack, the long-tail loss of customer confidence after an attack is difficult to quantify and even more difficult to fix. Running any business on the internet without DDoS protection is a risk, and you have to ask yourself if it's one worth taking.” Click here for more latest news.

Logpoint appoints Michael Haldbo as CFO

Logpoint has announced the appointment of Michael Haldbo as Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Reporting to Logpoint's CEO, Jesper Zerlang, Michael will be responsible for taking the company successfully through the next step of the Logpoint journey to become a European cyber security powerhouse. “We’re excited that Michael is joining the Logpoint team as we grow beyond scaleup and into an established cyber security company. Michael has extensive experience in taking leadership over transformation projects and M&A,” says Jesper Zerlang. “With our recent acquisition by Summa Equity, we have proven that Logpoint has the capabilities and critical mass to take us to the next level, and as we mature the business model, he is an evident choice to support and protect the business financially.” Michael Haldbo has 20 years of international and nordic experience in financial planning, analysis and strategy execution. He served as CFO at Signicat, Europe’s leading provider of digital identity solutions. Michael has also held financial executive roles at other companies in the IT and payment-related sector, including Nets and Unwire. “Logpoint has such a strong value proposition with world-class cyber security solutions, competitive pricing models, and the agility and flexibility that enable us to challenge the big mastodons in the SIEM market and become the number one vendor in Europe with a global range,” says Michael Haldbo. “From my perspective, Logpoint ticks all the boxes, scaleup, growth market, a strong business model, transitioning into SaaS and private equity owned. The frosting on the cake is that Logpoint solutions address a major societal challenge, namely the ever-growing cyber threat in the wake of COVID-19 and the war in Ukraine.” Click here for more latest news.