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Cisco Systems stock moved higher in late trading Wednesday after the networking giant showed signs of improvement in its product orders.
In alliance with Cohesity and others, Cisco is fueling near-zero latency between ransomware detection and remediation with its Extended Detection and Response platform.
Ransomware attacks exploded after COVID-19 according to several reports, and so have solutions accelerating detection. Restoring ransomed enterprise and customer data from accurate backups can provide organizations a leg up on recovery while making it possible to avoid paying attackers to unlock operational data.
Remediation is a capability that Cisco has added to its XDR platform, which the company announced at the RSA conference in April and launched for general availability globally on Tuesday.
SEE: Ransomware attacks increased 91% in March, as threat actors find new vulnerabilities (TechRepublic)
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Data snapshots key to recovery
One key to Cisco’s updated XDR platform is that when attackers hold an organization’s data for ransom, they lose leverage if the organization has accurate backups that can be easily and rapidly restored. Cisco and security and data management platform Cohesity, one of several third-party alliances driving Cisco’s XDR, announced this week that the XDR platform is able to do quick “snapshots” of data for rapid backup through Cohesity DataProtect and DataHawk solutions.
The new technology is designed to minimize the time between the beginning of a ransomware outbreak and capturing a snapshot of business-critical information to near zero, according to Cisco.
Raj Chopra, SVP, chief product officer for Cisco Security, said that while the market is rife with detection capabilities — and indeed, XDR, touted for rapid, comprehensive telemetry, was a major talking point at RSA this year — there are few ways to remediate attacks with near-zero time latency. He said the new capabilities in Cisco XDR will allow security operations teams to automate the process of detection while taking “snapshots” of critical information for restoration at the very first signs of a ransomware attack before it even reaches sensitive assets.
“Because we have been instructing Cohesity to take snapshots, we have isolated infected systems, and Cohesity reconstitutes those systems to the last known good configuration,” Chopra said.
Using AI to tune the cadence of backups
Chopra added that the capabilities include artificial intelligence processes that allow fine-tuning of snapshot timing based on historical training data, including from Cisco Talos Threat Intelligence around sensitive endpoints and user behavior.
“We have 25 years’ worth of incident playbooks in Talos. Outside of the U.S. government, we are the largest corpus of threat intel in the world around incident response, which is where a lot of nuance in the AI models for our XDR comes from,” he said.
SEE: At Cisco LIVE, new security platforms with AI under the hood (TechRepublic)
Cohesity is just one of several alliances behind Cisco’s XDR platform, noted Chopra. “One of the key things new for Cisco has to do with the fact that, with cybersecurity, we were not going to win as an island,” said Chopra, adding that the role of XDR for enhancing comprehensive detection telemetry was enhanced with third-party partnerships. “When we launched in April, we already had 13 vendors we had done pre-built integrations with. So for us, ‘extended’ also means other vendors. It means receiving telemetry from wherever vendors happen to be,” he said.
Microsoft Defender, Palo Alto Networks, CrowdStrike and SentinelOne are also aligned with Cisco XDR. “This is the start of remediation becoming more mainstream. That’s what this is about,” said Chopra.
Cisco acquires trio of companies for networking cloud business
Separately, Cisco has acquired Code BGP, a privately held company based in Greece that monitors border gateway protocols, an internet data routing protocol that finds the most efficient network route for transmissions across the web.
Cisco said the acquisition is designed to enhance the network monitoring capabilities of Cisco ThousandEyes network monitoring. Cisco also recently acquired network performance monitoring company Accedian and internet performance platform SamKnows.
Does setting the correct time on a router really matter? Actually, it does. In this edition of Cisco Routers and Switches, David Davis reviews the benefits of setting the correct time on your router, and he walks you through the three-step process to configure the correct time.
Last year, I wrote an article about why Cisco devices should
use Network Time Protocol (NTP) for their time synchronization needs, in which
I explained how to configure NTP on your Cisco devices (“Synchronize
a Cisco router’s clock with Network Time Protocol (NTP)”). Using NTP
is the ideal method for medium to large-scale networks.
However, if you have only a handful of routers, manually
setting the clock may be the easiest way to properly configure your devices’
times. Let’s walk through the process.
If a Cisco router boots up before you’ve configured a local
time or network time source, it will display the date as March 1, 1993. Here’s
an example:
Router> show clock *00:01:10.415 UTC Mon Mar 1 1993 Router>
This date’s appearance on log files is a good indication
that no one has set the router’s time source or local time. This is much more
likely than the router’s log entries actually dating back to 1993.
Does setting the correct time on a router really matter? While proper time
configuration isn’t necessary for a router to fully operate, that doesn’t mean
you shouldn’t set the right time. Here are some of the benefits of setting the
correct time on a router:
Configure the time zone
When setting a router’s (or switch’s) correct time, the
first step is configuring the proper time zone. This is the first step for a
reason: If you set the time first and then try to set to the time zone, you’ll
have to reset the time again.
The key point to remember is that it’s not enough to know that
you’re in the Eastern or Pacific time zone. You need to know how many hours you
are from Greenwich Mean Time (GMT).
For example, if you’re in the Eastern Standard Time zone in
the United States, you’re five hours behind GMT. You would indicate this to the
router with -5. If you’re unsure how many hours you are from GMT, the U.S.
Navy’s Web site offers a great resource—the World Time Zone Map.
After you’ve determined your time zone value, you can set
the time zone. For example, I live in the Central Standard Time (CST) zone, so
here’s how I would configure the router:
Router(config)# clock timezone CST -6
Configure Daylight Saving Time
After setting the appropriate time zone, you need to
configure the router to adjust for Daylight Saving
Time. You can use the summer-time
command to accomplish this. Using our CST zone example, here’s how to configure
the router to use Daylight Saving Time:
Router(config)# clock summer-time CDT recurring
The summer-time
command tells the router to refer to Daylight Saving Time as Central Daylight Time
(CDT), which will automatically occur according to predefined dates and times on
the router. (You can use the same command to manually set the date and time for
Daylight Saving Time.) The recurring
option tells the router to use the accepted U.S. Daylight Saving Time rules for
the annual time changes in April and October.
Configure the clock
After configuring the time zone and Daylight Saving Time, the
last step is to configure the router’s clock. You must do this while in Privileged
Mode—not Global Configuration Mode.
If you’ve never done this before, the format can be a bit
tricky. Here are some things to keep in mind:
- Use
the clock set command. - Use
military time. - Include
seconds when setting the time. - Specify
the month using its three-letter abbreviation. - Add
the date and the year.
Here’s an example:
Router# clock set 10:50:00 Oct 26 2006
View the time
After configuring the time zone, Daylight Saving Time, and
the clock, you can view the clock using the show
clock command. Here’s an example:
Router# show clock 10:51:33.208 CDT Thu Oct 19 2006 Router#
Keep in mind that most Cisco routers and switches don’t have
internal clocks that store the time when you power them off. That means rebooting
a device will lose the set local time. However, the time zone will remain set because
the router stores it in its configuration.
For more information on Cisco IOS time configuration, check
out Cisco’s
documentation for the various clock
commands. How do you set the time on routers or switches? Do you set it
manually or use NTP? What other router and switch courses would you like to see covered?
Share your comments in this article’s discussion.
Miss a column?
Check out the Cisco Routers and Switches
Archive, and catch up on David Davis’ most accurate columns.
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about router and switch management? Automatically
sign up for our free Cisco Routers and Switches newsletter, delivered each
Friday!
David Davis has worked
in the IT industry for 12 years and holds several certifications, including
CCIE, MCSE+I, CISSP, CCNA, CCDA, and CCNP. He currently manages a group of
systems/network administrators for a privately owned retail company and
performs networking/systems consulting on a part-time basis.
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Cisco Live 2023 promises a re-imagined IT experience complete with new innovations in networking, security and collaboration, to name a few, as the tech giant continues its journey toward building top tech platforms for MSPs and end customers.
Bookmark this page for the latest news and exclusive interviews with top executives and channel partners.
Partners Applaud Cisco’s Sustainability Focus With Data Center, Webex Control Hub Updates
‘Everyone has a sustainability goal, but it’s very hard to actually measure and track and figure out what my improvements actually did in terms of environmental impact. Cisco has done a pretty good job of turning that into a dashboard through Control Hub,’ says Joe Berger, area vice president of digital experiences at Cisco Gold partner World Wide Technology.
Cisco Channel Chief Tuszik On Networking Cloud, FSO, And How Generative AI Can Help Partners Grow Their Businesses
“When you look at the Cisco Live announcements; if it’s Networking Cloud, the security piece, what we’re doing with Webex or FSO, they all are offers, rather, solutions that we bring into the market that are ready to be delivered in a managed-as-a-service motion,” Cisco Channel leader Oliver Tuszik told CRN.
Cisco Injects Generative AI Into Security, Collaboration Portfolios For ‘Reimagined’ Customer Experiences
‘We were going to be investing very heavily in this notion of AI just being part of the fabric of everything … One of the big challenges we have in our industry is shortage of skill and talent, and we can make sure that every single person can become this very sophisticated user when they start using our products,’ Cisco’s EVP of Security and Collaboration Jeetu Patel tells CRN.
Cisco Webex Go With AT&T Addresses Cloud Calling For Mobility-Minded Partners
The tech giant has teamed with AT&T to help more businesses move to the cloud for their calling needs, while unlocking new mobility opportunities for partners, the company announced at Cisco Live 2023.
Cisco Live 2023: Cisco ELT’s 5 Big Statements
CEO Chuck Robbins, alongside the tech giant’s executive leadership team, talk about Cisco’s AI, networking and security launches, as well as the biggest trends happening in the IT industry on-stage at Cisco Live 2023.
Cisco Security Cloud Platform Now Includes SSE, Multi-Cloud Feature, Firewall Updates
‘When you have 70 players on average that are part of the security stack, that’s 70 different policy engines and 70 different cracks in the system. The efficacy of companies is going down when they buy point solutions and so what our customers are telling us is [they] need an integrated platform,’ Cisco’s Jeetu Patel tells CRN.
Cisco Builds On Security Platform Strategy, Unveils Unified Networking Platform
Following in the footsteps of its Security Cloud platform, the tech giant debuts its Cisco Networking Cloud strategy at Cisco Live 2023 to the delight of channel partners.
Cisco Accelerates Platform Push With New Full Stack Observability Platform
‘Cisco is using the term full stack observability and they mean it. Full stack creates a platform, which means, essentially, an ecosystem of observability and monitoring, and very few players have anything close to that,’ Cisco Gold partner NTT tells CRN.
CRN is providing full coverage of Cisco Partner Summit 2022. Bookmark this page for the latest news, videos and exclusive videos from the show.
Cisco SMB Segment ‘By Far’ The Biggest Partner Opportunity
‘The SMB market is by far the biggest opportunity to grow or even double its market share … And interesting enough, [in SMB], this is 100 percent partners,’ Cisco Channel Chief Oliver Tuszik tells CRN.
Cisco Partner Summit 2022: CEO Chuck Robbins’ Top 5 Quotes
‘We’ve got stuff going on in the cloud marketplaces that we didn’t have before, we’ve got partners delivering as-a-service today, we’ve got the new SASE [Cisco Plus] offer out in the marketplace. There’s a few things we definitely still need to do, but there’s an awful lot of offers that are out there today for customers,’ Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins said during the summit this week.
Cisco Partners: New API-First Strategy Will Help Drive ‘Automation’ And ‘Efficiency’
Partners tell CRN that Cisco’s newly established ‘API-first’ stance may not be ‘sexy’ and will be hard work, but it’s very important to the channel, especially as they begin to build out their own services.
Cisco Security Portfolio Gains New Features, Firewall Aimed At Hybrid Work Protection
To the delight of partners, Cisco reveals new security capabilities and a new addition to the 3100 firewall series to protect companies grappling with hybrid work and an influx of remote users at Cisco Partner Summit 2022.
Cisco Unveils ‘New Era’ Of Specializations Focused On Solution Delivery
‘We’re now looking for knowledge [and] we’re looking for experience … we’re focused on the partners’ ability to actually deliver the solution. That’s what customers are looking for. And because they’re multi-architectural in nature, you can leverage a lot of the expertise that you already have invested in and have in-house,’ Cisco’s Marc Surplus tells CRN about the tech giant’s new Solution specializations.
The Jaguars' depth at running back continued to standout with strong performances from Tank Bigsby and D'Ernest Johnson. Cooper Hodges, Darryl Williams and Chandler Brewer sustained injuries in Preseason Week 2, a situation to monitor as Jacksonville prepares to host the Dolphins in the final week of the preseason.
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Veeam and Cisco UCS Are Better Together: Examining the Shared Traits of Veeam Availability Solutions and Cisco UCS Storage Servers
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A man enters a Bank of America branch in New York.
Scott Mlyn | CNBC
As if higher mortgage rates weren't enough, it was harder even to qualify for a mortgage in July than it has been in a decade, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.
Its monthly index measuring credit availability dropped in July to the lowest level since 2013, indicating that lending standards are tightening even further.
While availability for all loan types dropped, the component of the index for jumbo loans fell the most, as banks face increasing liquidity issues. Jumbo loans cannot be sold to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, so they are usually held on bank balance sheets.
Higher mortgage rates have caused demand for home loans to drop. Mortgage applications to purchase a home are 26% lower than they were a year ago, and refinance demand is off 32%, according to the MBA's most accurate weekly survey.
"Declining origination volumes have led to lower profitability for many lenders, resulting in narrower loan product offerings to reduce operational costs," said Joel Kan, an MBA economist, in a release.
A decline in cash-out refinance programs was a major component of the overall drop in credit availability.
The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage is now hovering around 7%, more than double what it was just two years ago when refinancing was booming.
Most borrowers today would rather not have to trade out a 3% rate for a 7% rate just to pull cash out of their homes. They are instead turning to home equity lines of credit, which are second liens.
