Case Study
Global energy company transforms cybersecurity with Azure cloud-native platform
OUR CLIENT
After nearly a century, this multinational energy company produces natural gas liquids and petrochemicals. The company has retail and refinery operations in multiple locations around the world and employs approximately 15,000 people.
THE CHALLENGE
Geopolitical strife causes concern about cybersecurity
The ransomware attack that shut down the Colonial Pipeline in 2021 and the Ukrainian-Russian conflict escalated the client’s concern about its cybersecurity and risk posture. Company leaders wanted to ensure that it had the necessary safeguards in place to protect its organization.
The client wanted to improve the resilience in its security architecture to respond and mitigate potential cyberattacks. In addition, the company experienced security staff attrition, and leaders were worried about having the necessary expertise in-house to effectively monitor its environment and respond to any security incidents.
The client looked for a managed cybersecurity partner to help shift to a cloud-native security stack using Microsoft Sentinel and Defender and provide support with advanced managed extended detection and response (XDR) cybersecurity services.
THE TRANSFORMATION
Microsoft cloud security services deliver advanced security capabilities
CyberProof, a UST company, provided the customer with an end-to-end security platform that leveraged Microsoft Sentinel SIEM and Microsoft Defender to replace on-premise, legacy systems.
UST ran a transformational project to migrate to a Microsoft cloud-native platform. UST managed and operated a complete set of next-generation security services, monitoring IT and critical operational technology (OT) technology sources. The full set of security services included managed XDR, threat intelligence, threat hunting, managed endpoint detection and response (EDR), vulnerability management, and other advanced security services.
The client chose UST because of its previous experience of transforming the largest, most complex Azure Sentinel deployment to date, and the direct reference from that client. The deal took less than one month to close partially due to the Ukrainian-Russian conflict, which rapidly elevated the risk profile of the energy industry in general. A highlight of this project was the collaboration between the UST and Microsoft Azure teams, which was key to meeting all the client’s requirements.
THE IMPACT
Modern cybersecurity platform gives multinational energy company peace-of-mind
After a successful migration to Microsoft’s cloud-native security architecture, the company now has:
- Managed XDR services that reduce the risk of cyberthreats, despite the current uptick in cyber incidents worldwide
- 24/7 security monitoring, proactive threat intelligence, and threat hunting capabilities
- OT monitoring
RESOURCES
https://www.ust.com/en/our-partners/microsoft/ust-azure-cloudoperations