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Why Your Backup Strategy Might Be Your Biggest Cyber Risk & How to Fix ItIn the latest episode of Cybercrime Radio, Naj Husain, CEO of Elastio, exposes a critical blind spot that could derail even the most well-defended security posture: the illusion of safe, recoverable backups. In a world where ransomware silently infiltrates environments and encrypts data before detection, traditional backup and disaster recovery strategies fall short. Many organizations unknowingly preserve compromised data, rendering their recovery plans useless when it matters most. In this episode, you'll learn: Why data integrity is the missing link in cyber resilienceSecurity doesn’t stop at the firewall. If your backups aren’t verified, your recovery plan is a gamble.How Elastio pinpoints the last known clean copyWith continuous scanning and automated validation, Elastio ensures you restore from uncompromised recovery points—fast.What’s required for compliance and cyber insurance readinessRegulators and insurers are raising the bar. Clean backup validation is no longer optional—it's critical. If your business relies on the ability to bounce back from an attack (and let’s face it, whose doesn’t?), this few-minute interview conversation is a must-listen. Listen to the podcast nowListen to the podcast nowThen take the next step toward cyber resilience. Read and download the Elastio Solution BriefRead and download the Elastio Solution Brief to see how our Ransomware Recovery Assurance Platform delivers confidence, not just hope.

Ransomware is no longer a matter of if but when. Today’s attacks are stealthier and more persistent, and increasingly target backups to sabotage recovery efforts. Elastio is proud to announce a strategic partnership with Advance2000 (A2K) to launch the Advance2000 Ransomware Recovery Assurance Platform, delivering a new standard in data protection, recovery validation, and cyber resilience. This integrated solution, powered by Elastio’s Recovery Assurance Platform and A2K’s Veeam-based backup infrastructure, ensures customers can detect ransomware encryption, validate backup integrity, and restore with confidence—all within A2K’s secure, high-performance private cloud. From automated scanning of new backups to on-demand forensic analysis of archived data, this platform enables organizations to proactively defend against ransomware threats before recovery is needed, turning backup into a true line of defense. Read the full press release.

Explore Elastio on AWS MarketplaceExplore Elastio on AWS Marketplace We’re excited that Elastio has been awarded the “Deployed on AWS” badge. This badge demonstrates that the Elastio Ransomware Recovery Assurance PlatformElastio Ransomware Recovery Assurance Platform is fully hosted on AWS and qualified under the new AWS Marketplace Private Pricing Agreement (PPA) guidelines. Starting May 1, 2025, AWS requires that SaaS offerings be entirely deployed on AWS to be eligible for PPA drawdowns and customer-specific benefits. Elastio meets these new standards, ensuring our customers can continue retiring AWS spend through Marketplace purchases of Elastio ransomware recovery solutions. Why This Matters to AWS Marketplace Buyers With AWS’s updated PPA policy, only “Deployed on AWS” solutions are eligible for: ✅ PPA commitment drawdown✅ Marketplace incentives and discounts✅ Streamlined procurement with consolidated AWS billing✅ Faster onboarding and vendor approval processes Elastio proudly qualifies, so your ransomware recovery assurance investment supports your security and financial goals. Born for the AWS Cloud Elastio Ransomware Recovery Assurance Platform was built from the ground up to protect AWS-native data. From S3 snapshots through AWS Backups, Elastio continuously scans and validates recovery points for ransomware encryption, corruption, and compromise. Elastio integrates directly into your AWS Backup and Disaster Recovery workflows to ensure clean recovery points are available beforebefore a restore is needed. Powered by Core AWS Services Elastio leverages the scale and flexibility of AWS to ensure ransomware recovery across: Amazon S3 Amazon EKS Amazon EFS Amazon AMIs Amazon EBS AWS BackupAWS Logically Air-Gapped VaultsAWS Elastic Disaster Recovery (AWS DRS) Our clean recovery assurance engine operates with minimal impact, ensuring fast, secure protection of mission-critical cloud data environments. Why Recovery Assurance Is the Future of Resilience Ransomware doesn’t just attack production systems—it often intentionally targets and infiltrates your backups and disaster recovery environments. Elastio brings recovery confidence back by delivering: Proactive monitoring of backupsUncovering ransomware and insider threat encryptionEstablishing clean recovery points for Instant Restore readinessDelivering Audit-grade reporting for compliance Explore Elastio on AWS MarketplaceExplore Elastio on AWS Marketplace

Raising the Bar for AWS Data Resilience: Elastio and Aligned TG Partner to Deliver Ransomware Recovery Assurance In a world where ransomware threats are no longer a question of if but when, cloud resilience demands more than strong architecture—it demands the ability to recoverdata. That’s why Elastio Ransomware Recovery Assurance Platform (Elastio Platform) and Aligned Technology Group (Aligned TG) have joined forces to deliver a new standard for ransomware recovery on AWS. This partnership integrates the Elastio Platform directly into Aligned TG’s cloud and disaster recovery services, giving AWS customers a critical advantage: the ability to verify that their backup data and failover environments are clean, uncompromised, and ready for restoration—before they ever need them. Together, we’re shifting the conversation from backup to assured recovery—empowering organizations to restore with confidence, reduce downtime, and maintain business continuity in the face of ransomware and other emerging threats. For more information on how Elastio Platform and Aligned TG contact Chris Sauer, Global Vice President, Strategic Alliances and Channels, at partner@elastio.com. Read full Press Release

Join our upcoming webinar on Thursday, May 15th to learn how AWS and Elastio are redefining cyber-resilient disaster recovery.In today’s digital-first world, availability is mission-critical and increasingly under attack. Ransomware has shifted the rules of engagement. Simply having a disaster recovery plan is no longer enough. Organizations now need assurance that their recovery points are available, clean, uncompromised, and ready to restore. That’s why we’re hosting an essential new webinar: “Availability in the Age of Ransomware: Building Cyber-Resilient Disaster Recovery on AWS” Thursday, May 15, 202511:00 AM EST Why This Matters Now Ransomware is getting smarter— bypassing perimeter security solutions and silently infecting data and making its way into backups before it’s even detected. With the rising adoption of AWS for critical workloads, disaster recovery strategies must evolve beyond traditional snapshots and replication. Cyber resilience means: Detecting threats before recovery is initiatedValidating backups in real timeEnsuring Zero Trust principles apply to your Disaster Recovery (DR) architecture Meeting RTO/RPOs without compromise What You’ll Learn In this live session, we’ll show how forward-thinking organizations are combining: AWS Elastic Disaster Recovery (DRS) – for fast, scalable failoverElastio’s Ransomware Recovery Assurance Platform – for backup data validation, ransomware detection, and ensuring clean recovery points Together, these technologies offer secure, automated, and assured recovery, helping teams recover faster and cleaner, even in the face of modern threats. Who Should Attend Cloud architects and engineersSecurity and IT operations leadersBusiness continuity and DR plannersCISOs and compliance officers If your business depends on AWS — and your brand depends on staying available — this is a webinar you don’t want to miss.

And Why It’s Critical in Today’s Ransomware-Filled WorldIn cybersecurity, prevention gets most of the spotlight — firewalls, EDR, threat hunting. However, as attacks become more advanced and evasive, organizations realize a sobering truth: recovery is the last line of defense. And unless you can prove that recovery will work quickly, cleanly, and confidently, you're flying blind. This is where recovery assurance comes in. Recovery Assurance Defined At its core, recovery assurance is the ability to validate that your backups are restorable, uncompromised, and free from ransomware. It’s not just about having backups — it’s about knowing with certainty that they’ll work when everything else has failed. Why Recovery Assurance Matters Ransomware Targets BackupsModern ransomware doesn’t stop at encrypting primary data. It actively seeks to compromise backups too by staying undetected and getting unknowingly copied into recovery points, making restoration dangerous or even impossible.Compliance and RegulationsFrameworks like DORA, NIS2, and NYDFS are beginning to require provable recovery capabilities. “Trust me” no longer meets regulatory expectations — evidence is required.Mean Time to Recover (MTTR)Business continuity depends on quick recovery. Testing recovery paths in advance—and continuously—ensures confidence when time matters most.Peace of Mind for Executives and BoardsIn a boardroom conversation, “Yes, we tested our backup recovery last night and confirmed it's clean” lands much better than “We hope it works.” What Recovery Assurance IsNotNot It’s not just having an immutable and air-gapped backupIt’s not a once-a-year tabletop testIt’s not hoping your Disaster Recovery plan works It’s a systematic, continuous validation process that eliminates guesswork and panic. Elastio Recovery Assurance Made Real Elastio was built for the modern threat landscape, where assuring recovery is just as important as preventing breaches. Our platform continuously scans backups for ransomware and insider threat encryption to validate that your recovery points are reliable, provide insights into the integrity of your data, and enable forensic insights to ensure only uncompromised data is restored. Whether you're protecting critical infrastructure, financial data, or cloud-native applications, Elastio provides the proof that your recovery will work before you ever need it. Don’t just back up. Back up with confidence. Learn how Elastio ensures Recovery Assurance:Ensuring Clean Recovery Points in a World of Sophisticated and Evolving RansomwareEnsuring Clean Recovery Points in a World of Sophisticated and Evolving RansomwareEnsuring Clean Recovery Points in a World of Sophisticated and Evolving Ransomware See Elastio in action, Schedule a Demo Today

Modern Ransomware Requires Smarter Ransomware Mitigation and Recovery StrategiesTraditional disaster recovery can no longer keep up with modern ransomware. Today’s attacks often lurk undetected, silently encrypting data before striking, leaving even your backups compromised. That’s why Elastio has teamed up with AWS Elastic Disaster Recovery (AWS DRS) to deliver a ransomware mitigation and recovery solution designed for today’s evolving threat landscape. The Solution: Ransomware Mitigation and Clean Recovery Assurance with Elastio + AWS DRSThe new Solutions Brief showcases how combining AWS DRS with the Elastio Ransomware Recovery Assurance Platform enables organizations to recover fast and recover clean. Here's what you get: Pre-Validated Recovery Points – Elastio Platform continuously scans AWS DRS snapshots and backups for ransomware, insider threats, and data corruption.Zero-Trust, Out-of-Band Scanning – Threats can’t hide or tamper with Elastio Platform’s external scan engine.Regulatory-Ready Reporting – Instantly generate reports aligned with NYDFSScalable, Cost-Efficient Architecture – Powered by AWS Batch and available in managed and self-hosted models. Why It Matters When ransomware hits, guessing which backup is clean isn't a recovery strategy—it's a risk. With Elastio + AWS DRS, you don’t have to gamble. You’ll know exactly which snapshots are safe to restore, dramatically reducing downtime, data loss, and risk. Explore the Full Solution BriefExplore the Full Solution Brief Request a DemoFind us on AWS Marketplace

Why Recovery Readiness Is Now Essential for FSIs and Regulated EnterprisesAWS recently launchedrestore testing for AWS Backuprestore testing for AWS Backup, allowing organizations to verify that their backups can be recovered in a disaster scenario. This capability matters. Because while most enterprises have backups, they often can’t answer the most critical question: Are they clean? How would you know? It’s a wake-up call for any organization that assumes backups equal resilience. Restore testing proves your backups are functional, but it doesn’t prove they’re uncompromised. Recovery Assurance is Now Essential Cybersecurity requires layers of protection because all software is permeable.No single layer—not endpoint, firewall, or anomaly detection—can stop every threat. Every layer has weaknesses. That’s why modern security architectures rely on layered defense, and why recovery assurance is now essential. Ransomware doesn’t storm the gates. It finds cracks in your security stack, quietly encrypts production data, and those encrypted files are silently captured in your backups. It doesn’t just test prevention — it tests your ability to recover. Elastio + AWS Backup: Clean Recovery Starts Here Elastio integrates directly with AWS Backup to add a critical data integrity layer: an independent ransomware scan that tells you whether your backups can be trusted. Elastio adds a Data Integrity Layer to your security stack. It proactively inspects backups and storage with AI/ML behavior-based detection to uncover ransomware and insider threat encryption and pinpoint clean recovery points. This isn’t another signature-based scan. It’s a purpose-built system for modern ransomware behavior that’s cloud-native, frictionless to deploy, and effective at a petabyte scale. Why FSIs and Regulated Industries Are Moving Fast We serve security-conscious institutions acting not just out of fear, but out of a mandate. Regulatory frameworks like DORA, NYDFS, and MAS TRM now require provable recovery readiness.Board-level directives are forcing organizations to revisit backup strategy through a ransomware lens.And prior attacks—or near misses—drive urgency to close the recovery gap. As one customer put it: “Assuming your backups are clean is not a recovery strategy. Elastio is the way to prove to the board that our ransomware response plan was real.”“Assuming your backups are clean is not a recovery strategy. Elastio is the way to prove to the board that our ransomware response plan was real.”— VP of IT Infrastructure, Enterprise Software Company Join the Webcast: Elastio + AWS + Sheltered Harbor. Recovery assurance is no longer optional — especially for Financial Institutions and regulated industries. Join AWS, Elastio, and Sheltered Harbor for a webcast exploring how leading institutions are: Aligning with DORA, NYDFS, and Sheltered Harbor standardsValidating backups continuously — not just during auditsBuilding resilient recovery strategies against modern ransomware Register for the Webcast Final Word AWS Backup restore testing is a powerful validation tool. But to truly strengthen your ransomware defenses, you need to go deeper. With Elastio’s independent expert scans, your team can ensure that recovery points are clean, ransomware-free, and verified before you need them. Because when the time comes, it’s not your firewalls or SIEMs that matter most.It’s whether you can recover. #Elastio #AWS #RansomwareRecovery #FSI #DORA #NYDFS #ShelteredHarbor #RecoveryAssurance #DataIntegrityLayer

In today’s threat landscape, financial institutions must go beyond traditional disaster recovery strategies to ensure their most critical data's integrity, availability, and survivability. Sheltered Harbor—a nonprofit industry initiative—has established standards for protecting customer account data in the event of a major cyberattack or operational disruption. At the core of these standards is the requirement for a secure, immutable, and isolated data vault (DV) that can be used to restore customer data even if all other recovery mechanisms fail. As ransomware threats rise and regulatory expectations tighten, financial institutions must ensure critical data remains secure, immutable, and recoverable—even during worst-case scenarios. In collaboration with AWS, Elastio—a trusted provider of Ransomware Recovery Assurance solutionsElastio—a trusted provider of Ransomware Recovery Assurance solutions brings advanced forensic scanning and validation capabilities to the architecture. Elastio enables institutions to confidently ensure that data entering the vault is clean, free from ransomware or malware, and restorable.Elastio complements the air-gapped, immutable design of the DV and adds another critical layer of assurance in support of Sheltered Harbor’s mandate for data integrity. This blog AWS will explore building a Sheltered Harbor-compliant DV on AWS by mapping technical requirements directly to AWS-native services and trusted partner solutions like Elastio. Specifically, AWS focuses on: Creating a secure, survivable, and immutable data vault using services like Amazon S3 with Amazon S3 Object Lock, AWS Key Management Service, and AWS Identity and Access Management.Building an air-gapped architecture that logically isolates the DV from the institution’s production environment using AWS Organizations, AWS Direct Connect, and Amazon EventBridge.Incorporating forensic validation and ransomware scanning, where Elastio Ransomware Recovery Assurance plays a key role in ensuring data hygiene and readiness before it enters the vault. AWS and Elastio offer a robust, cloud-native solution that aligns with Sheltered Harbor’s requirements, helping financial institutions move forward with confidence in their cyber recovery posture. Whether you're a large national bank or an emerging fintech, this blog will help you understand how to operationalize Sheltered Harbor compliance using trusted tools and partners. Whether you're a fintech, bank, or insurer, this post provides guidance on safeguarding your most critical data. Read the full blog and start building cyber resilience, the Sheltered Harbor way.

In an era where cyber threats are escalating in frequency and sophistication, financial institutions are under immense pressure to fortify their digital defenses. Regulatory frameworks such as the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) Cybersecurity Regulation and the European Union's Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) have been established to ensure financial entities maintain robust cybersecurity measures. This article delves into the specifics of NYDFS Section 500.16 and DORA, explains their requirements, and demonstrates how Elastio Ransomware Recovery Assurance Platform is a pivotal solution for achieving and maintaining compliance. Understanding NYDFS Section 500.16: Incident Response Plan Overview of 23 NYCRR Part 500 Established on March 1, 2017, the NYDFS Cybersecurity Regulation (23 NYCRR Part 500) mandates that financial services companies implement comprehensive cybersecurity programs to protect consumers and ensure the safety and soundness of New York's financial services industry (dfs.ny.gov). Specifics of Section 500.16 Section 500.16 focuses on the establishment and maintenance of a written Incident Response Plan (IRP) and backup strategy. This plan is designed to enable prompt response to and recovery from any cybersecurity event that materially affects the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of the entity's information systems or the ongoing functionality of its operations (dfs.ny.gov). New York’s updated cybersecurity regulation (23 NYCRR 500) mandates: Immutable backups: Storage isolated from network connections to prevent tampering. Annual testing: Validation of backup restoration processes. Ransomware preparedness: Incident response plans must address encryption events and ensure clean recovery. The IRP must address the following: Internal processes for responding to cybersecurity eventsClear goals and response strategiesDefined roles and responsibilitiesCommunication protocols (internal and external) Remediation and improvement measures Documentation and reporting standards Secure recovery from backups Root cause analysis and lessons learned Non-compliance risks fines up to $5 million, with Class A companies (revenue >$1B) facing heightened scrutiny. Exploring the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) Introduction to DORA The Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA), Regulation (EU) 2022/2554, aims to unify and bolster the digital operational resilience of EU financial entities. It became enforceable on January 17, 2025, and mandates robust ICT risk management frameworks (eiopa.europa.eu). DORA’s Five Core Pillars: Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Risk Management: Establish comprehensive and continuously monitored frameworks.Incident Reporting: Mandatory notification of significant ICT-related incidents to regulators.Resilience Testing: Periodic testing, including advanced threat-led penetration tests.Third-Party Risk Oversight: Detailed oversight of external ICT service providers.Information Sharing: Encouragement of threat intelligence exchange. DORA emphasizes readiness and agility in responding to operational disruptions, with supervisory authorities authorized to enforce compliance measures. Elastio: A Strategic Compliance Ally Ransomware Detection and Clean Backup Assurance Elastio leverages ML/AI to detect ransomware encryption within data, including backup data. This proactive threat detection ensures clean recovery points, directly aligning with: NYDFS 500.16’s requirement for secure backup restorationDORA’s resilience testing and incident recovery expectations "Elastio continuously validates backup data to ensure integrity, security, and ransomware-free recovery options." (elastio.com) Streamlined Incident Response Elastio supports full-spectrum incident response: Real-time alerts and detection logsBuilt-in response workflowsAutomated reporting tools This functionality satisfies: NYDFS 500.16’s IRP documentation and communication needsDORA’s incident reporting obligations Regular Testing and Compliance Reporting With Elastio, organizations can: Conduct frequent automated restore tests to validate readinessProduce resilience reports for auditsMap recovery testing directly to DORA’s requirements Third-Party Integration and Risk Management Elastio supports agentless integration with third-party backup tools. Every backup, regardless of its source, is subject to ransomware scanning and verification, which is key for DORA’s ICT third-party risk oversight. Mapping: Elastio vs. Compliance Frameworks Requirement NYDFS 500.16 DORA Elastio Feature Incident Response Plan ✅ Required ✅ Required Built-in incident response capabilities Backup Recovery Validation ✅ Emphasized ✅ Emphasized Clean backup assurance and verification Real-time Incident Detection ⚠ Recommended ✅ Required ML/AI-driven ransomware detection Compliance Reporting ✅ Required ✅ Required Automated reporting tools Third-party ICT Risk Oversight ❌ Not Covered ✅ Required Agentless validation of all backup sources Resilience Testing ⚠ Optional ✅ Mandatory Continuous restore testing and validation Why Elastio Outperforms Traditional Tools Elastio isn’t just a ransomware recovery tool—it’s a compliance engine. With out-of-the-box support for: IRP executionContinuous scanning of backups for ransomware and insider threatsContinuous backup validation and testingRegulatory reporting While XDR and EDR solutions focus on prevention, Elastio specializes in recovery assurance: Proactive compromise detection: Identifies ransomware encryption in backups missed by perimeter tools.Zero downtime validation: Scans occur without impacting production workloads.Multi-regulation support: Single platform satisfies NYDFS, DORA, SEC Rule 10, and Sheltered Harbor. …it enables financial entities to safeguard operations, accelerate recovery, and seamlessly achieve regulatory compliance with NYDFS and DORA. Explore more at Elastio Additional Resources NYDFS Cybersecurity RegulationDORA Full Text (EU 2022/2554)Elastio Ransomware Resilience Overview

In today’s threat landscape, recovery is everything. That’s why we’re excited to announce a powerful new partnership between Elastio, the leader in ransomware recovery assurance, and JetSweep, a premier Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS) provider on AWS. Together, we’re delivering a next-generation approach to business continuity that goes beyond simply backing up data to ensuring that your recovery points are clean, validated, and ransomware-free before a crisis ever hits. JetSweep integrates the Elastio Platform directly into its AWS-based DRaaS offering, providing continuous ransomware scanning, proactive assurance, and rapid failover capabilities through this collaboration. The result? Organizations can recover faster, smarter, and with complete confidence in their recovery integrity. This partnership represents more than improved disaster recovery—it’s a new standard in cyber resilience, ensuring that your business can bounce back from ransomware or operational disruptions without the fear of reinfection. Read the full press release to learn how Elastio and JetSweep are setting a new bar for secure, validated recovery in the cloud.Read the full press release to learn how Elastio and JetSweep are setting a new bar for secure, validated recovery in the cloud.

A Stealthy Ransomware Attack Threatens Business Survival JetSweep, an AWS consulting partner, received an urgent call from AWS. A SaaS company had fallen victim to a sophisticated ransomware attack that had encrypted critical business data, leaving operations completely paralyzed. With no access to their systems, the company faced customer disruptions, potential SLA violations, and long-term reputational damage. Investigation revealed that the attackers had gained access through an unpatched firewall, which JetSweep immediately patched to prevent further access. But the real challenge emerged when the company tried to restore from backups. The attackers had used a sophisticated tactic: fileless ransomware which encrypted data without detection by hiding the decryption key in memory. The company had been operating normally, unaware that ransomware was already stealthily encrypting the data over time. Even with a leading endpoint protection platform in place, the attack had gone undetected. The corrupted data had been replicated into backups, leaving the company without a clear recovery path. The Solution: Rapid, Automated Backup Scanning and Recovery with Elastio JetSweep sprang into action, securing the environment and halting further infiltration. However, the real challenge remained—identifying a clean recovery point in the compromised backup set. JetSweep turned to the Elastio Ransomware Recovery Assurance Platform (Elastio Platform) to avoid the time-consuming, error-prone process of manually checking backups. Elastio Platform's advanced AI-driven scanning technology enabled JetSweep to: Scan all backups for ransomware encryption, pinpointing the last known clean recovery point.Detect encryption markers and embedded ransomware payloads that had slipped past traditional security solutions.Identify a known-clean backup within hours, eliminating the need for weeks of trial and error. “Elastio allowed us to see almost immediately which backups were clean. That saved us days—possibly weeks—of trial and error.” — Jeff Fudge, Director of Cloud Solutions, JetSweep Key Benefits: Faster Recovery, Reduced Data Loss, and Future Resilience The results of using Elastio Platform were game-changing for the SaaS company: Significant Time Savings – Automated scanning identified a clean backup within hours, preventing weeks of manual effort.Minimized Data Loss – The most recent clean backup was 10 days old. Had the attackers persisted undetected for longer, recovery might not have been possible.Risk Reduction – Elastio Platform’s agentless scanning ensured no reinfection after restoration.Enhanced Detection & Prevention – Ongoing backup monitoring enables early ransomware detection, stopping future attacks before they spread. Impact: Restored Operations and Strengthened Cyber Resilience. Want to Learn More? Download the Full Case Study