Hosting firm says it lost all customer data after ransomware attack (www.bleepingcomputer.com)
from floofloof@lemmy.ca to technology@lemmy.ml on 24 Aug 2023 08:27
https://lemmy.ca/post/3856267

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MaxPower@feddit.de on 24 Aug 2023 08:53 next collapse

Now that you mention fucking incompetence, I need to verify my 3-2-1 backup strategy is correctly implemented. Thanks for the reminder, CloudNordic and AzeroCloud!

Moonrise2473@feddit.it on 24 Aug 2023 08:55 next collapse

What’s the point of primary and secondary backups if they can be accessed with the same credentials on the same network

snaptastic@beehaw.org on 24 Aug 2023 10:45 next collapse

What’s the correct way to implement it so that it can still be automated? Credentials that can write new backups but not delete existing ones?

VerifiablyMrWonka@kbin.social on 24 Aug 2023 10:54 next collapse

For an organisation hosting as many companies data as this one I'd expect automated tape at a minimum. Of course, if the attacker had the time to start messing with the tape that's lost as well but it's unlikely.

Moonrise2473@feddit.it on 24 Aug 2023 14:32 collapse

It depends what’s the pricing. For example ovh didn’t keep any extra backup when their datacenter took fire. But if a customer paid for backup, it was kept off-site and was recovered

It might be even pretending to be a big hosting company when they’re actually renting a dozen deds from a big player, much cheaper than maintaining a data center with 99.999% uptime

Moonrise2473@feddit.it on 24 Aug 2023 10:58 next collapse

i use immutable objects on backblaze b2

from command line using their tool is something like b2 sync SOURCE BUCKET

and from the bucket setting disable object deletion

also borgbase allows this, backups can be created but deletions/overwrites are not permanent (unless you enabled them)

rentar42@kbin.social on 24 Aug 2023 11:13 next collapse

Fundamentally there's no need for the user/account that saves the backup somewhere to be able to read let alone change/delete it.

So ideally you have "write-only" credentials that can only append/add new files.

How exactly that is implemented depends on the tech. S3 and S3 compatible systems can often be configured that data straight up can't be deleted from a bucket at all.

IWantToFuckSpez@kbin.social on 24 Aug 2023 11:30 next collapse

A tape library that uses a robot arm https://youtu.be/sYgnCWOVysY?t=30s

Backups that are not connected to any device are not susceptible to being overwritten and encrypted by malware.

reflex@kbin.social on 24 Aug 2023 13:55 collapse

A tape library that uses a robot arm
https://youtu.be/sYgnCWOVysY?t=30s

Or like that vault in Rogue One?

Haui@discuss.tchncs.de on 24 Aug 2023 11:55 collapse

I don’t know if it is the „correct“ way but I do it the other way around. I have a server and a backup server. Server user can‘t even see backup server but packs a backup, backup server pulls the data with read only access, main server deletes backup, done.

cwagner@lemmy.cwagner.me on 24 Aug 2023 13:53 collapse

Similar with Promox Backup Server. While Proxmox actively writes the backups to PBS, it’s PBS that decides what to do with the data and how many versions to keep.

Haui@discuss.tchncs.de on 24 Aug 2023 14:03 collapse

Neat! Thanks for mentioning it!

CrateDane@feddit.dk on 24 Aug 2023 14:07 collapse

They weren’t normally on the same network, but were accidentally put on the same network during migration.

chris@l.roofo.cc on 24 Aug 2023 09:16 next collapse

That’s what you call an epic blunder.

President_Pyrus@feddit.dk on 24 Aug 2023 09:35 collapse

It is a company destroying blunder.

exu@feditown.com on 24 Aug 2023 10:46 collapse

I think they’re aware of that

Martin Haslund Johansson, the director of Azerocloud and CloudNordic, stated that he does not expect customers to be left with them when the recovery is finally completed.

Moonrise2473@feddit.it on 24 Aug 2023 11:36 collapse

The customers are already lost:

  1. pay the expensive ransom, if the bad actor gives them the decryption key, customers are relieved but still pissed, will take the data and move to somewhere else with a big FO. Go out of business.

  2. don’t pay the ransom, customers are pissed and move to somewhere else with a big FO. Go out of business.

hunt4peas@lemmy.ml on 24 Aug 2023 09:16 next collapse

Time and time again, data hosting providers are proving that local backups not connected to the internet are way better than storing in the cloud.

IWantToFuckSpez@kbin.social on 24 Aug 2023 09:48 next collapse

Any redundant backup strategy uses both. They both have inherent data loss risks. Local backups are great, but unless you store them in a bunker they are still at risk to fire, theft, vandalism and natural disasters. A good backup strategy stores copies in at least three locations. Local, off-site and the cloud. Off-site backups are backups you can physically retrieve. Like tapes stored in a vault in another city.

[deleted] on 24 Aug 2023 09:49 next collapse
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CeeBee@lemmy.world on 24 Aug 2023 13:57 next collapse

How are you using that 7 port USB hub?

[deleted] on 24 Aug 2023 14:08 collapse
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CeeBee@lemmy.world on 24 Aug 2023 21:28 collapse

Oh ok. So you’re using them effectively like cold storage backups? I was scared you were going to tell me that you were running an ZFS pool off a USB hub, lol.

[deleted] on 24 Aug 2023 21:34 collapse
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CeeBee@lemmy.world on 24 Aug 2023 22:34 collapse

I dunno about that. If you actually were using a USB hub for ZFS, then I have a 10 petabyte flash drive to sell you.

[deleted] on 24 Aug 2023 22:42 collapse
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foggenbooty@lemmy.world on 25 Aug 2023 00:08 collapse

The only downside to something like this would be electrical surges if you leave the drives plugged.

hardypart@feddit.de on 24 Aug 2023 10:03 collapse

The 3-2-1 backup strategy: “Three copies are made of the data to be protected, the copies are stored on two different types of storage media and one copy of the data is sent off site.”

theshatterstone54@feddit.uk on 24 Aug 2023 18:20 next collapse

How would that work in practice? 1 medium offsite, and 2 mediums on-premises?

hardypart@feddit.de on 24 Aug 2023 19:04 collapse

Exactly.

humancrayon@sh.itjust.works on 24 Aug 2023 22:42 collapse

This is the way.

zacher_glachl@lemmy.world on 24 Aug 2023 09:16 next collapse

Other people’s computers. Never forget.

Fizz@lemmy.nz on 24 Aug 2023 09:29 next collapse

If you fuck up that badly you shouldn’t be allowed to operate in that industry.

papalonian@kbin.social on 24 Aug 2023 09:46 next collapse

Problem is that you have to work in the industry to fuck up that badly.

CrateDane@feddit.dk on 24 Aug 2023 14:13 collapse

They’re a small company, they’ll probably just go bankrupt.

Ecstatic_equilibrium@kbin.social on 24 Aug 2023 09:37 next collapse

They had one job

Hamartiogonic@sopuli.xyz on 24 Aug 2023 11:26 collapse

People literally pay these guys to not screw up this one thing.

Treczoks@kbin.social on 24 Aug 2023 09:53 next collapse

Put all the data in the cloud, they said. It will all be save and handled by professionals!

BeanCounter@sh.itjust.works on 24 Aug 2023 09:56 next collapse

How is that even possible? What kind of hosting company runs in a way that they would lose all the data with ransomware?

floofloof@lemmy.ca on 24 Aug 2023 13:51 collapse

Sounds like they had all their backups online, instead of keeping offline copies. It’s a reminder that everyone needs at least one backup that isn’t connected to any computer. It’s also a reminder that “the cloud” should not be the only place you keep your data, because hosting providers are targets for this stuff and you don’t know how careful they are.

IonAddis@lemmy.world on 24 Aug 2023 12:47 next collapse

Danish hosting firms CloudNordic and AzeroCloud have suffered ransomware attacks, causing the loss of the majority of customer data and forcing the hosting providers to shut down all systems, including websites, email, and customer sites.

digdilem@lemmy.ml on 24 Aug 2023 21:54 next collapse

I feel really bad for everyone involved - customers and staff. The human cost in this is huge.

Yes, there’s a lot of criticism of backup strategies here, but I bet most of us who deal with this professionally have knowledge of systems that would also be vulnerable to malicious attack, and that’s only the shortcomings we know about. Audits and pentesting are great, but not infallable and one tiny mistake can expose everything. If we were all as good as we think we are, ransomware wouldn’t be a thing.

snailtrail@lemmy.world on 24 Aug 2023 23:31 collapse

I think that people generally overestimate how much money tech companies like this one actually make. Their profits are tiny. A lot of the time, tech companies run on investment money, and can’t actually turn a profit. They wait for the big acquisition or IPO payday. So if you think you’re actually gonna get 100k off them, good luck. Sometimes they’re barely keeping the lights on.

DeprecatedCompatV2@programming.dev on 23 Sep 2023 06:05 collapse

I wonder why they can’t/won’t pay.