Ctera and Bluepoint Solutions Deliver Secure Hybrid Storage

CTERA Networks, Inc., in cloud storage enablement, announced that Bluepoint Solutions, Inc., in payment and content management solutions for financial institutions, has teamed up with CTERA to provide its credit union customers with efficient, secure managed storage and data protection using CTERA’s all-in-one cloud storage gateway appliances.

CTERA was showcasing the solution at the AWS Summit in New York City, NY.

According to the 2012 Credit Union National Association report, there are more than 7,000 credit unions operating in the United States, serving almost 96 million members. Credit unions are bound by many of the same regulations and stringent data protection practices as larger banks, but the average credit union employs only 33 full-time employees, so they are resource-constrained and must use the most efficient means available, without compromising on security and data privacy.

Many credit unions employ tape backup with offsite storage to protect their data. However, it is no longer the most cost-effective way to protect data, and poses many challenges including lengthy backup windows, manual operation and transportation, expensive off-site storage and unpredictable recovery.

The Bluepoint-CTERA solution provides a hybrid cloud solution that is simple to manage through web-based administration, delivers security, and a set of NAS capabilities on-site. The CTERA appliance is installed locally, providing fast on-site recovery, while Amazon Web Services (AWS) redundant cloud storage delivers protection against local disasters with an off-site copy, in compliance with high standard and regulatory requirement. Data is protected both in the cloud and on-premises using 256-bit AES encryption. Encryption keys are private and managed by the credit union, which retains complete control over data access.

"Our customers require high standards of data protection and fast recovery in the event of a catastrophe or equipment failure," said Andrew Tilbury, CMO of Bluepoint Solutions.

"Until recently, robust backup and recovery solutions were expensive and complex, and tape does not provide the reliability our customers need. Now we provide a service that replaces both tape backup and file servers in a single, cost-effective and robust solution." "We are excited at this partnership with Bluepoint and AWS," said Clay Rogers, director of channel development at CTERA. "Our hybrid architecture and ability to work seamlessly on Amazon’s S3 cloud storage infrastructure enabled Bluepoint to deliver a secure, optimized and cost-effective solution to this demanding market."