Protecting the backbone of business: Securing Microsoft 365 with Rubrik, Blue Turtle

Bolster your security posture.

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As businesses increasingly adopt Microsoft 365 (M365) as their go-to platform for collaboration and productivity, the platform's widespread use also makes it a prime target for cyber attacks. Recent data reveals that 60% of M365 tenants have experienced account takeovers, while 81% have faced e-mail breaches. These statistics highlight the vulnerability of even the most secure-looking systems. While Microsoft provides robust tools for data governance, cyber criminals can exploit these tools to manipulate retention policies and permanently delete data if they gain access to global admin credentials.

Moreover, the built-in litigation hold feature in M365, designed primarily for eDiscovery in legal scenarios, falls short when it comes to restoring lost data on a large scale. This limitation underscores the need for a more comprehensive solution. To ensure rapid recovery from cyber incidents and maintain business continuity, organisations must implement a secure, air-gapped system. Such a system not only bolsters security posture but also significantly reduces the risk of sensitive data exfiltration.

This is where solutions like Rubrik come into play, providing a fortified layer of security for critical M365 data, ensuring it remains resilient, discoverable and readily accessible.

Imagine this: a major city where everyone uses the motorway or freeway to get to work. This major road, while convenient, becomes a prime target for disruptions, from accidents to deliberate shutdowns. Similarly, M365, being the most widely used business platform, attracts a range of cyber threats.

Yet, many businesses operate under a dangerous misconception – they believe that Microsoft entirely handles data security. The reality? Microsoft provides the infrastructure, but the security of the data itself is the customer's responsibility. This gap in understanding can lead to catastrophic outcomes, especially with the rise in sophisticated ransomware attacks and phishing schemes.

“We see more and more audit findings highlighting that data within Microsoft 365 is not protected from cyber threats and at risk of partial or complete data loss through malicious events,” says Francois Joubert, M365 SaaS Product Specialist at Rubrik.

One reason we urge customers to add Rubrik to their M365 security arsenal is that it offers robust capabilities for securing M365 environments, providing comprehensive protection against data loss and cyber threats. At the core of Rubrik's solution is the Zero Trust Data Security model, which ensures that all M365 data – including Exchange Online, OneDrive, SharePoint and Teams – is resilient, discoverable and always accessible.

Rubrik's immutable architecture is a key feature, protecting data from being modified, encrypted or deleted by unauthorised users, which is crucial in preventing the impact of ransomware attacks and ensuring business continuity. The platform's cloud-native design also introduces a logical air gap, further isolating data from potential threats and enhancing security resilience.

Additionally, Rubrik simplifies data management for M365 with a unified and intuitive interface that centralises control over data protection. This allows organisations to implement policy-driven automation for tasks such as backup, archiving and data retention, reducing the administrative burden and eliminating the risk of manual errors. The platform's SLA policy engine dynamically scales to manage large volumes of data, providing flexible and scalable protection that can adapt to the needs of enterprises as they grow. Capabilities also extend beyond basic backup and recovery, offering advanced features like global predictive search and file-level restores, which enable rapid recovery from data loss incidents, ensuring that critical business operations can continue with minimal disruption.

Let’s look at the case of St. Luke's, a healthcare provider with millions of patient records. When they migrated their systems to Azure, Rubrik's security framework ensured these records were not just secure, but also readily accessible 24/7. This capability isn't just about compliance; it's about trust and reliability – patients and healthcare professionals need to know that their data is safe and available when needed most.

While securing M365 is vital, businesses are increasingly using a variety of SaaS applications. Here’s where Rubrik's versatility shines. It doesn’t just stop at M365; it extends its protection to other critical platforms like Salesforce and Workday. This comprehensive approach means that as your business grows and diversifies its digital tools, Rubrik scales with you, ensuring that all data across all platforms is secure.

The Georgia Banking Company, a financial institution managing a significant volume of sensitive Microsoft 365 data, needed to enhance its data resilience; it turned to Rubrik, which provided a robust solution to protect and manage its cloud data. Rubrik’s security framework ensured that Georgia Banking Company's data was secure and recoverable, significantly reducing the risk of data loss and downtime.

Rubrik’s effortless integration allowed for seamless protection across the company's entire Microsoft 365 environment. By automating backup and recovery processes, Georgia Banking Company could ensure that critical data was always accessible and safe from threats. This isn't just about compliance; it’s about maintaining customer trust and ensuring that essential financial services continue without interruption, even in the face of potential cyber threats.

In a significant move to bolster cyber resilience, Rubrik has partnered with Aon to offer an integrated approach to data protection and cyber insurance. This partnership leverages Rubrik's advanced Zero Trust Data Security framework, which includes immutable backups and comprehensive threat detection capabilities.

By ensuring that data is secure, resilient and always accessible, Rubrik helps businesses recover swiftly from incidents like ransomware attacks. Aon complements this by providing tailored cyber insurance solutions specifically designed to mitigate financial risks associated with cyber threats. This collaboration not only enhances data security but also offers businesses a comprehensive insurance policy, providing peace of mind and robust protection against digital threats.

Choosing the right security partner can be as crucial as the security technology itself. Blue Turtle, with its deep expertise in Rubrik solutions, offers more than just technical support – it provides strategic guidance tailored to each business's unique needs. This partnership means businesses not only implement Rubrik effectively, but also integrate it into their broader data management and cyber security strategies. Blue Turtle helps demystify the complexities of data security, ensuring that businesses protect their data and comply with regulatory requirements, which can be a daunting task on its own.

The story of M365 security is one of urgency and opportunity. The threats are real and present, but so are the solutions. Rubrik, with Blue Turtle, offers a robust, comprehensive approach to data security that goes beyond mere protection – it ensures resilience, continuity and peace of mind.

For any business using M365, the time to act is now. Secure your data, secure your future. Contact Blue Turtle to find out how.