The Backup Wrap-Up

W. Curtis Preston (Mr. Backup)

Formerly known as "Restore it All," The Backup Wrap-up podcast turns unappreciated backup admins into cyber recovery heroes. After a brief analysis of backup-related news, each episode dives deep into one topic that you can use to better protect your organization from data loss, be it from accidents, disasters, or ransomware.

The Backup Wrap-up is hosted by W. Curtis Preston (Mr. Backup) and his co-host Prasanna Malaiyandi. Curtis' passion for backups began over 30 years ago when his employer, a $35B bank, lost its purchasing database – and the backups he was in charge of were worthless. After miraculously not being fired, he resolved to learn everything he could about a topic most people try to get away from. His co-host, Prasanna, saw similar tragedies from the vendor side of the house and also wanted to do whatever he could to stop that from happening to others.

A particular focus lately has been the scourge of ransomware that is plaguing IT organizations across the globe. That's why in addition to backup and disaster recovery, we also touch on information security techniques you can use to protect your backup systems from ransomware. If you'd like to go from being unappreciated to being a cyber recovery hero, this is the podcast for you.

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359 episodes
Updated Yesterday

Episodes359

Newest first

Apr 17, 2023 · 44 min
Backing up databases, Part 1 (Backup to basics)
It was a dark and stormy night in 1993 when paris (the database server) went down. It would be a night the new backup admin would never forget because he couldn't restore the database from backup. The only bright side of that very sad story is that it launched a career. Yes, that's the night W. Curtis Preston started his path toward Mr. Backup. Hear him tell the story in his own words, in the middle of the backup to basics series about backing up databases. Avoid the mistake that could have (but did not) cost him his job and enjoy a good episode while you're at it!
Apr 10, 2023 · 52 min
What computers should you back up? (Backup to Basics Series)
Are you backing up all the things you should be backing up? In this latest episode of our Backup to Basics series, Mr. Backup & Prasanna look at the list of the traditional things we think about backing up: servers, databases, laptops, mobile devices, file servers, virtualization servers, etc. The big question tackled in this episode is what of these things should you be backing up? Mr. Backup, of course, takes a pretty hard line about backup, but he may surprise you on some of his exceptions. We hope you enjoy the episode.
Apr 3, 2023 · 55 min
Can you apply least privilege to private data?
You know how we tell you to limit the amount of privilege each admin gets, in order to limit the blast radius if their account is compromised? What if you could apply that concept to applications that use private data to accomplish their task? We blindly give everything we have on each person to just about any app that needs anything. But if you had an app that only needs first name and email address, why not just give it that? And if it asks for more than that, what if you had a way to give it masked data, since it doesn't really need it anyway? That's how I would describe Sky Flow, a privacy as a service company, after interviewing its Head of Marketing, Sean Falconer. Fascinating new approach to the problem of personal data sprawl.
Mar 27, 2023 · 1 hr 2 min
Six vulnerabilities your password manager might have
I was shocked to learn that my favorite password manager had a few known vulnerabilities, and you might be shocked too! We found this great research paper from the University of York, and invited one of the co-authors on to discuss it. Siamek Shahandasthi, an Associate Professor from the University of York, explained all the vulnerabilities discussed in the paper, and why each is important. I was able to verify that at least one is still found in my current password manager. How many are in yours? Let's pressure the companies to address these, shall we? Check out the paper yourself here: https://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/158056/8/Revisiting_Security_Vulnerabilities_in_Commercial_Password_Managers_2.pdf
Mar 20, 2023 · 48 min
What is deduplication and how does it work? (Backup to Basics series)
In our latest episode of the Backup to Basics series, we talk about what I think is the most important invention in my career: deduplication. Without dedupe, much of what we do in backup and recovery, and disaster recovery, would simply not be possible. Without dedupe there really is no disk backup market; there is no cloud backup market. I'd be out of a job! What is dedupe, anyway, and how does it work? What are the different kinds of dedupe and does that matter? You should learn a lot about this important topic.
Mar 13, 2023 · 49 min
Preparing an incident response plan for ransomware
An incident response plan is the key to successfully surviving a ransomware attack, and it's a bit like Dramamine. The time to get one is too late to get one. @Vmiss (Melissa Palmer) joins us again to talk about this important topic. We talk about the important role cyber insurance companies can play in helping you find an IR team and helping you develop a plan. (They can actually force you to do so in order to get coverage.) @vmiss was a blast to talk to again, and we're sure you'll enjoy this episode.
Mar 6, 2023 · 1 hr
What to do with your network in a ransomware attack
We have talked about this a lot on the pod, and now we have someone that can explain what you actually do with your network when you get a ransomware attack. It's Tom Hollingsworth from Gestalt IT, and we're excited to have him on the pod. Some of his recommendations of course, require some configuration in advance. We talk about VLANs, SEIM and access management tools, and why many networking admins are terrified of the "reject all" concept that would actually make your network much more resilient in an attack. There is some really good stuff in this episode.
Feb 27, 2023 · 53 min
Could your backup system achieve Sheltered Harbor certification?
Sheltered Harbor is a non-profit organization dedicated to making sure financial organizations are able to recover after a cyber attack. Even if you're not a financial institution, there is a lot to learn hear. They've done a lot of work to make this standard practical in the real world. If nothing else, you can review what they ask orgs to do and see if you can apply it to your own environment. We once again have Eric Bursley to guide us through the topic. Even Mr. Backup learned something!
Feb 20, 2023 · 1 hr 1 min
Do you need a managed security service provider (MSSP)?
Today we're visited by Scott McCrady, the CEO of Solcyber, a leading managed security service provider. He says they're changing the model of how small and medium-sized companies secure their infrastructure against attacks, without any of the typical upfront cost or ongoing maintenance hassles of traditional methods. Have you tried securing your environment, only to suffer "alert fatigue?" Scott feels your pain and has fixed this by doing all of that as a service, which you pay for like a typical SaaS offering. Just a per-user fee per month - one SKU. It's a new way to secure your infrastructure.
Feb 13, 2023 · 50 min
@vmiss warns about ransomware attacks on VMware
How great is it to discuss your favorite topics, learn something new, and have a great time all at the same time? That's what this episode is like. @vmiss (AKA Melissa Palmer) came on the pod for the first time this week. I've read a lot of her content and tweets over the years, and it was great to finally put a face to the name. She knows her stuff when it comes to security, since she was actually working in it before she got into VMware. It was a great conversation I think you'll learn a lot from.
Feb 6, 2023 · 45 min
Block ransomware from writing to your Windows Veeam backup server
We've talked a bit on this podcast about ransomware groups targeting Windows-based backup servers, and Veeam specifically. There's a new product on the market targeted at this problem, and it's called Blocky for Veeam from Grau Data. Today we have the founder & CEO of Grau Data, Herbert Grau, and their head of North American operations, David Cerf. What we didn't know until recording this episode is that these are the same people that used to make the gigantic Grau tape libraries that is used covet back in the 90s! They got out of the hardware business and have been making software ever since. Blocky for Veeam is a new application of another battle-tested product. Fascinating story, and one that will have other applications in the future.
Jan 30, 2023 · 39 min
Don't be like LastPass
LastPass made some serious blunders: how they responded to the hack in August, code they created before August, and how they configured their backup system. All of that came to a head at the end of 2023 when the hackers from August used stolen credentials to download a backed up copy of customer information. Most of it was encrypted, but they still gained a lot of information. Many are calling for customers to leave the product. However, even if you're not a lastpass customer, there are lessons to be learned here. Learn those lessons and don't be like LastPass.
Jan 23, 2023 · 53 min
Mr. Backup reflects on 30-year career
Today (Jan 23) marks 30 years to the day that W. Curtis Preston joined the backup industry. Fresh out of the US Navy and wanting to make a name for himself, he joined MBNA, a 35-billion dollar credit card company as "the backup guy." Within seven years he would write the industry's first book dedicated to backup, and since that time, he's gone on to be the world's leading expert in backup and recovery. What were backups like in 1993? How have things changed over the years? And how did he apapt to all of those changes? Prasanna takes the lead as host for this episode, asking Curtis a number of very insightful questions. Be sure to join us for this very special episode.
Jan 16, 2023 · 46 min
Protecting backups from ransomware (Backup to Basics)
The latest in our Backup to Basics series is about making sure hackers don't delete, encrypt, or exfiltrate your backups as part of a ransomware attack. (Our Backup to Basics series reviews topics from Curtis' latest book Modern Data Protection, which you can download at druva.com/e-book.) We talk about how and why hackers are specifically targeting your backup system to either disable it or use it as a source for exfiltration. Then we talk about a number of things you can do to defend your backup system against these attacks. This is our most important episode in a while.
Jan 9, 2023 · 51 min
Backup team completes two-year project in three months
Hear the incredible story of Albert Uy, who was handed a two-year project that had already wasted 18 months. They told him he had four months to complete it. He looked at that timeline and told them there was only one way he could do, by switching horses in mid-stream. Not only did they finish it in time; they finished it early. Albert has also managed backup teams for many years, so before we cover this project story, we talk about backup has progressed over the years. We also talk about how much easier his job got once he started using Druva has his backup solution.
Jan 2, 2023 · 28 min
Best of 2022 - Backups, Security, and Ransomware
Nothing but the best for our listeners! Curtis and Prasanna review their favorite episodes from 2022, from the time Curtis had to restore Backup Central to the shocking outage at Rackspace ( which is still ongoing!). This is your chance to catch up on what you missed last year as we prepare for a new year! Here are links to all the episodes discussed. Happy New Year! Mr. Backup Forced to Restore Backup Central Restore Test Failed to Bad Documentation Security expert rips Okta for their response to hack How to prevent ransomware, slow its spread, and respond if you get it How to prepare for an emergency (at home and work) Backup practitioner tells stories from the trenches Top 5 security mistakes you're making in the cloud International lawyer discusses e-discovery in US & other countries Shocking RackSpace Hosted Exchange Ransomware Attack
Dec 19, 2022 · 44 min
Shocking RackSpace Hosted Exchange Ransomware Attack
Tomorrow marks two weeks from when the RackSpace outage started on Dec 2, 2022. They confirmed it was via a ransomware attack and it is not. going. well. We're going to do a deeper dive into this once it is all over, but this is a first-blush look at what is happening and RackSpace's reaction to it. When we recorded this episode, their reaction was not looking good. I'm sad to say it's gotten even worse. Check it out!
Dec 12, 2022 · 37 min
Understanding Backup Levels (Backup to Basics Series)
Ok, so maybe not the most interesting topic. ;) But we promise you, this episode has a great story that involves Mr. Backup being kidnapped by a client, basically because he had a backup level issue. Learn about full backups, incrementals, cumulative incrementals, differentials, numbered levels, tower of hanoi backups, and why all this matters. It turns out it matters a lot more these days for structured backups than filesystem backups, which have typically gone to an incremental forever setup.
Dec 5, 2022 · 38 min
Risk Management Advice from an industry expert
This episode we have Boris Agranovich, who has been a risk manager for decades, and speaks SIX languages (Russian, Ukrainian, Hebrew, Dutch, English, and Spanish). How amazing is that? He started the Global Risk Community, the largest online community for risk managers, and it's doing very well. We talk about the differences between what we do (as IT risk managers) and what he does, where he's managing risk for the entire organization. Fascinating guy with a unique perspective.
Nov 28, 2022 · 44 min
What is archive and retrieve? (Backup to Basics)
Archive is NOT backup, and hopefully this episode will help you understand how/why that is the case. In this continued romp through W. Curtis Preston's Modern Data Protection, we explore the definition of archive, and how different it is from backup. You should have no trouble understanding the difference between the two after listening to this episode. As usual, Mr. Backup fills in the definition with interesting stories of what happens when you confuse backup and archive. Enjoy!