The adoption of AI has caused an increased need for proper data governance, and companies are now under pressure to ensure data maturity. Globally, many companies are either using or exploring AI, with over 82% actively leveraging or considering AI for business operations. Yet, according to Gartner only 14% of cyber leaders can balance maximizing the efficient use of their data and securing their data to hit business objectives.
As more businesses rush to utilize AI, they need to ensure they are operating at peak data maturity with a proper framework to handle the increasing amount of critical data they are managing. By leveraging a data maturity model framework, organizations can identify the most effective ways to optimize data usage, helping pinpoint gaps in security and foster greater data efficiency. As part of this framework, organizations also need a mature data management strategy.
One of the most overlooked parts of a mature data management strategy is having the proper storage requirements to backup and store critical data. Businesses face many threats when it comes to their data security, and proper storage to handle AI workloads may be the only way to prevent AI-generated data from being lost or tampered with due to ransomware or another disaster. Your business may be AI-capable, but is your storage infrastructure AI-ready?
Why Storage Has to Be Involved in the AI Conversation
There are several reasons why proper storage is essential for data created and consumed by AI— businesses need to ensure data remains easily accessible, is secure against evolving threats, can be recovered in the case of a disaster, and must be optimized for AI workloads.
Accessibility is important because developers must be able to quickly and efficiently find and leverage data to train other AI algorithms. Most of the time this type of data is considered “mission critical” and can be the most valuable to business operations. Having this type of data readily available is key to ensuring streamlined processes when it matters most.
This data also needs to have the highest level of security while it is being stored. Given that 96% of ransomware attacks now target backup data, storage needs to be ransomware-proof and able to withstand any downtime or outage an organization may face. Backups are primary targets for attackers because they render companies unable to restore their data, making it more likely that they will pay the ransom to retrieve critical data. In the meantime, businesses could be left defenseless and face extended periods of IT outages if their “mission-critical” data is not accessible. This could cause both reputational and monetary loss that would be devastating for shareholders, customers, and employees alike.
Cybersecurity attacks are not the only reason storage may be lost or manipulated. Production data, or the data used in a business’s daily operations, should always be treated as though it was destroyed or corrupted. Therefore, a golden recovery copy, or a clean, reliable, and isolated copy of critical data is mandatory. Accidental deletion, overwriting data, or any other kind of mistake caused by human error can compromise your data. Software and hardware failures such as corruption or viruses can also put your data at risk, especially if your software and hardware do not have the most recent updates. Lastly, environmental factors such as power outages, floods, and extreme weather are all good reasons to ensure your backup data can be recovered.
What’s more, AI tools can produce an excessive amount of data at an exponential rate, and traditional storage architectures may not be able to keep up with the amount of data needed to be stored. Therefore, storage for AI must be equipped to handle massive workloads efficiently. Using scalable and secure data storage, such as tiered storage solutions, will present optimal capabilities so data is being monitored and saved.
The Best Storage of AI Data (Without Breaking the Bank)
Tiered backup storage ensures that vital data is quickly accessible and is one of the most cost-effective solutions. It allows for data retention, permitting data to be accessed and reused at any time. Tiered storage and backups organize data based on its importance and frequency of access. High-priority data goes on fast, expensive storage like SSDs, while less critical data is stored on cheaper, slower media like HDDs or cloud storage. Specifically, AI data should be stored on tier 0 or tier 1 given the above requirements. Tier 0 is high-speed storage for mission-critical data with NVMe media types and all-flash storage arrays. Tier 1 is high-performance storage for frequently accessed data with SSDs and hybrid Flash storage media types.
Taking it a step further, backing up the data housed in tiered storage as often as possible will allow for quick access in the face of a disaster, such as human error or malicious alteration. Ensuring copies of backup data stored in multiple locations, with several types of encryptions, and on various media types is the only way to be sure backups are secure.
When choosing a ransomware-proof backup and storage vendor, it is important to ensure you are selecting immutable storage that can withstand any kind of disaster that could put your data at risk. It’s important to note that not all immutable storage delivers on this agreement. If ‘immutable’ data can be overwritten by a backup or storage admin, a vendor, or an attacker, then it is NOT a truly immutable storage solution. Understanding the core concept of true immutability will help separate secure backup systems from empty vendor claims.
These five requirements help define a backup storage environment that delivers immutability:
- S3 Object Storage: A fully documented, open standard with native immutability that enables independent penetration testing
- Zero Time to Immutability: Backup data must be immutable the moment it is written
- Zero Access to Destructive Actions: No administrator—internal or external—should be able to modify, delete, or reset immutable data.
- Segmentation of Backup Software and Storage: Backup software and backup storage must be physically isolated to prevent compromised credentials from being used to alter or destroy data, and to provide resilience against other disasters.
- Hardware Form Factor: A dedicated appliance isolates immutable storage from virtualized attack surfaces and should remove all risks during setup, updates, and maintenance.
By meeting these requirements, organizations can assure immutability and thereby ensure that whatever happens—ransomware, insider threats, or credential breaches—backup data remains protected and recoverable.
As AI becomes a consistent tool for businesses, they need to adopt and identify better data management and infrastructure to ensure data maturity. The answer to this may lie in tiered storage and backups as the best way to secure the excessive amounts of data created and trained by AI and allow for the ability to quickly access and secure this critical and expansive data.