So far…
On December 2, Rackspace, a well-known managed cloud computing company, announced that it was investigating an issue with its Hosted Exchange Server. This caused a massive outage among customers who lost access to their emails.
some customers report I waited over eight hours on the phone to speak to Rackspace customer service about the issue before giving up.
Small businesses that depended on Rackspace found themselves having to spend days offline as a result of the outage. The company suggested the client migrate their email system to Microsoft 365, and Rackspace scrambled to fix the problem. .
By December 6th, Rackspace had confirmed that the cause of the problem was what many observers had suspected: ransomware.
The company also said it had mobilized 1,000 support staff to reduce waiting times as it tried to deal with the influx of calls from customers. I can’t help but feel sorry for the staff currently working on Rackspace’s customer service hotline. It’s not their fault that something like this happened, but they’re on the front lines dealing with a constant and furious flow of customers.
By Dec. 5, Rackspace said it had hired a third-party expert to investigate the ransomware attack, and declined to confirm whether it had paid or was prepared to pay the ransom to the extortionists.
In the latest update posted on Thursday, December 8th, Rackspace said: Rest assured that we will continue to work around the clock to limit the impact you are currently experiencing. “
We also warned our clients that cybercriminals and scammers could exploit this situation by sending emails pretending to be from Rackspace or impersonating them on the phone. The company says it will notify customers if it finds evidence that attackers have accessed sensitive data.
This is clearly a huge headache, not only for Rackspace itself, but also for Rackspace’s customers.
Some of Rackspace’s customers have already publicly posted that they’re discontinuing the service, while others aren’t afraid to vent their frustration as the problem continues.
Also, the damage to Rackspace’s reputation is exacerbated by the fact that it regularly advertises its expertise in securing networks.
And now, multiple class-action lawsuits have been filed alleging Rackspace failed to adequately protect customer data.
The truth is, no company can be 100% certain that nasty security failures won’t happen. Rackspace’s competitors should ask themselves if they are the next contender before getting complacent about the company’s problems.
As always, what matters most is not whether an organization will be hit by a ransomware attack, but how well it copes with its impact and recovery. Rackspace’s current problem is that so many businesses rely on its services to run their businesses that their patience will run out if further progress isn’t made soon. right.
