Now that the initial shock after the Crowdstrike incident has subsided, the first companies are starting to analyze the situation – regardless of whether they were affected themselves or escaped with a scare. One thing seems to be clear: very few people could have imagined such a large-scale outage caused by an update by some software actually designed to protect the system. However, it often doesn’t even have to be such a large-scale outage to suffer serious consequences for business operations.
No Windows, no company network, no emails
In the current case, the impact was enormous. Crisis plans (where they existed) were triggered and IT security manager had to keep an eye on a whole range of systems and processes. However as we all know, the most important thing in any crisis, large or small, is one thing: sufficient and uninterrupted communication. Be it internally or, of course, the availability for customers and external partners. But, once the blue screen of death (BSOD) has struck, it obviously becomes difficult for most users to access their own corporate mailboxes. And if the company network as a whole is also down, it becomes difficult even with the business smartphone.
Email continuity: Independent of providers, independent of devices
An email continuity solution that is completely independent of the company’s own infrastructure can provide at least some relief here. In the event of a crisis, Retarus’ solution, for example, automatically routes emails already at gateway level to its own independent cloud platform. Without relying on Microsoft, other hyperscalers or email providers. Using a webmailer, employees can access pre-provisioned mailboxes and can still be reached via their known email addresses. Thanks to continuous and precautionary synchronization with the Active Directory, not only their recent email history, but also the company address book is available whenever an emergency occurs.
Thanks to the easy-to-use browser interface of the Retarus solution, employees do not need any training in advance; a link and credentials are all that is required. Also, such a webmailer can be accessed at any time from practically any Internet-enabled device. While access via private devices may not normally be appreciated by IT managers, it can make a huge difference in a crisis. Especially, if there are simply no alternatives available, a universally accessible solution is a decisive advantage. And there are number of security measures built in as well: Access only via protected webmailer and secure browser connection. Also, there is of course no export options for end users and synchronization with additional or local email clients is also prevented.
Communication in a crisis
Of course, even such a solution is far from solving all the problems that have arisen in connection with the Crowdstrike outage. But at least it enables what many affected companies have unfortunately been lacking in recent days: permanent availability and comprehensive communication – both internally and externally.
Find out more about Retarus’ Email Continuity solution here or get directly in touch with our experts or partners.
Note: The featured image is from flickr user reivax and is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
