Businesses know digital transformation is an important factor in their success, but most still have much work to be done. Only 10% of companies describe themselves as fully digital, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit[^1].

[^1]: The Economist Intelligence Unit Digital Evolution Report, 2016

While a new breed of IT services is required to propel business into this digital age, that doesn't mean the IT organization will need a huge budget increase to obtain the IT systems critical to this transformation. There are ways to reduce costs for existing activities and processes so IT organizations can free up funds for systems to support digital transformation. For example, CenturyLink and VMware have collaborated to deliver the Dedicated Cloud Compute Foundation (DCCF) service. This hosted private cloud solution delivers next generation data center technology in a turnkey model, providing businesses the means to leverage cloud services for digital transformation.

Public cloud services were innovative and cost-attractive when they launched more than 10 years ago. Now, most organizations understand there are limitations to this model, and that transformation requires changing from legacy data center concepts to a software-defined data center (SDDC).

Businesses now demand that cloud services enable faster and more efficient transformation of IT infrastructure. For many...

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Big Data as a Service (BDaaS) describes a wide variety of functions that can be outsourced to the cloud. They range from data collection and storage, to the tools used to analyze data, to providing analysis and reports. For businesses, the end goal is being able to apply the insights gleaned from analysis to drive growth.

CenturyLink has developed a BDaaS offering that includes managed Cloudera, professional services and methods to on-ramp customers. We deliver this solution on bare metal infrastructure for performance gains over virtualized environments.

Our BDaaS solution consists of three core components:

First, we offer a managed infrastructure, delivered on bare-metal hardware. This is differentiated from the virtual servers generally offered for many cloud Hadoop environments. And while bare metal is a differentiator, we also offer networking expertise, as well as advanced security capabilities.

Second, the service is based on Cloudera. Through our strong alliance with Cloudera, we have been in tight collaboration to roll out this service and have integrated CenturyLink’s scripts with Cloudera’s API to drive fast deployment on the servers.

Finally, CenturyLink provides consulting services and professional services for data analytics. Our scientists and data engineers help organizations drill down into their use cases to find the solutions that...

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Cloud Application Manager Recognized as Product Leader in Hybrid Cloud

January 25, 2018 By Jim Greene

Organizations increasingly utilize multiple infrastructures and deployment models in a hybrid configuration. To optimize application deployment and minimize administrative burdens, they demand a comprehensive hybrid management platform that helps them manage the full IT environment — cloud and premises-based, remote and local, Infrastructure, Platform, and Software-as-a-Service — as a pool of IT resources.

When considering a hybrid management platform, businesses look beyond basic management and orchestration capabilities to the number and types of cloud services, hypervisors, APIs, and microservices a platform can support. Enterprise IT organizations also consider whether a platform can manage non-virtualized workloads and containers.

Frost & Sullivan has a global team of analysts and consultants who conduct ongoing research across multiple markets, sectors and geographies. Through extensive primary and secondary research across the entire value chain of specific products, they identify companies whose consistently high standards for product or service quality and innovation allow them to form deep customer relationships. Against this backdrop, Frost & Sullivan recently recognized CenturyLink as the Product Leader in Hybrid Cloud Management Platforms.

According to Frost & Sullivan’s research, CenturyLink Cloud Application Manager® stands out among the competition for its comprehensive capabilities...

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The concept of the Internet of Things (IoT) has introduced new complexities into the web of network security, and the approach to security has to change to accommodate that. In previous posts we've talked about predictive analytics and changing security policies for the digital revolution of IoT, but what exactly is going to change in the realm of data security? Well, according to most technology sources, almost everything.

The Game Changer

The biggest problem with security in the IoT is that hackers are coming up with new ways to commandeer and take down IoT devices everyday. This "guerrilla warfare" method is not traditional because it can come from almost any angle (within the corporate data system, attacks on the actual device, etc), so a pattern of attack is hard to establish and then look for within the system. Commercialized products for general public consumption are especially vulnerable because as the products are developed they are often pushed to market before their security features have been fully tested. The agile method of releasing and then reiterating is good for making progress and getting user feedback, but can leave devices vulnerable to attack. There are, however, several ways to combat these security vulnerabilities.

Move from

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In a previous blog we mentioned the Internet of Things (IoT) and how it is changing the approach towards cybersecurity. Predictive analytics is increasingly becoming an integral part of the security game, as companies invested in IoT use analytics to identify attacks before they happen, an important step in the evolution of security. As IoT continues to increase its share of the IT market and also changes the way we use technology in everyday life, we must adjust our cybersecurity policies to take into account this fundamental shift in security needs.

IoT is also a big driver in the digital transformation of company infrastructure, as organizations respond to the changing needs and demands of their customers for more technology integration. In fact, research findings published by Inmarsat say that IoT has become the leading reason for digital transformation and is the number one priority for 92% of organizations.

As companies go through digital transformation and incorporate IoT, they need to keep security top-of-mind. Gartner states that "by 2020, 60 percent of digital businesses will suffer major service failures due to the inability of IT security teams to manage digital risk". Organizations cannot afford to have long periods of downtime due to cyberattacks...

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CenturyLink's end-to-end security managed services are built to detect, protect, and respond to security threats and malicious activity anywhere customers do business. Bolstering these features, CenturyLink’s Managed Security Services will now leverage ThreatConnect, a threat intelligence-based security platform that taps into SAP HANA. The partnership allows CenturyLink to utilize its Managed Services offering, composed of a data-driven set of tools to improve detection, protection, and remediation services for customers.

CenturyLink’s security service is built to help Security Operations Center (SOC) specialists and customers identify, block, and mitigate security threats through Security Log Monitoring(SLM), incident management, and response support services. ThreatConnect will integrate with the CenturyLink platform to provide an offering and solution that fits with its customers’ new or existing threat management and security operations functions.

Regarding ThreatConnect’s impact working with organizations, CEO Adam Vincent said, "the MSSP program is a force multiplier that organizations like CenturyLink can leverage to offer threat detection and response, customized processes or any of a number of premium services to clients."

Adam Vincent’s vision is centered on automating as much of a SOC as possible and while continuing to build a community around threat intelligence. In years past, the barriers were technology-based as the resources and process...

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CenturyLink is proud to announce that for the fifth consecutive year Gartner’s 2017 Magic Quadrant for Managed Hybrid Cloud Hosting, Europe has again positioned CenturyLink as a "Leader" in their Magic Quadrant. We have been recognized by Gartner® in Europe for our "ability to execute" and "completeness of vision." The designation validates how CenturyLink is helping businesses of all sizes to achieve their Digital Transformation goals, across public, private, hybrid and multi-cloud environments.

Market Leader Criteria Specifications

According to Gartner, leaders in their Magic Quadrant meet the following criteria:

• Proven staying power in the market
• Frequently innovate on existing products
• Reliable enterprise-class needs
• Proven technical competence
• Ability to deliver services to a wide range of customers
• Address multiple use cases with stand-alone or integrated solutions
• Have a presence in multiple European locations
• Offer solutions around data sovereignty requirements

Matthew Johns, Product Marketing Manager, EMEA describes our Managed Hybrid Cloud Hosting in Europe: Here at CenturyLink, we believe our experience in designing and delivering solutions across multiple technology platforms is particularly key in this day and age where there is so much complexity in the cloud market. With an enormous variety of services available across multiple providers, and such a huge skills gap in the market, many organizations find it difficult to...

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The Internet of Things (IoT) encompasses many avenues and aspects of modern technology and life. Our devices have enabled us to become a more connected society because they have been designed specifically to connect to one another. But with this connection comes many challenges. As data is shared between the ever-expanding network of "smart" devices, we have to look at how we can protect that data in ways we haven't previously had to.

What is IoT?

The Internet of Things is basically a network of connected devices. Or as one Forbes writer excellently described it: "...the concept of basically connecting any device with an on and off switch to the Internet (and/or to each other). This includes everything from cellphones, coffee makers, washing machines, headphones, lamps, wearable devices and almost anything else you can think of. This also applies to components of machines, for example a jet engine of an airplane or the drill of an oil rig.". When we talk about IoT, we're talking about the revolution of technology-driven smart devices that have changed the way we live, work, and play. As more and more devices are developed and connected, there are just as many questions and issues that come into...

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What does a Digital Transformation look like?

Organizations everywhere are embarking on Digital Transformations — going beyond simple automation and cost savings to reach into new areas, revolutionizing their business models and discovering new growth opportunities by taking advantage of leading-edge technologies to conduct business differently. In doing so, they’re enhancing their processes, their value propositions, and their relationships with both internal stakeholders and external customers.

Innovative enterprises continue to lead the way by pursuing new solutions for digital innovation. For example, large retail companies used to rely on physical stores to showcase, house, and ultimately sell their product a decade ago. However, that industry underwent a complete Digital Transformation, ushering an e-commerce boom that demanded new platforms, processes, and standards were developed to take full advantage of digital technologies that are easy to use, deploy, patch, and maintain.

Leading companies invest heavily in developing a sound Digital Transformation strategy, and the quality of that strategic approach is paramount to the overall success of transforming a business.

Even as the IT industry is rapidly evolving, it's important to keep in mind that Digital Transformation is less of a sprint and more of a marathon. To maximize the efficiency of their digital strategy, companies must...

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CenturyLink is excited to announce the launch of our newest European public cloud node: DE3. This announcement increases our global footprint to 16 locations, including four in Europe and two in Germany.

DE3, which is physically located in Frankfurt, Germany, is an example of how CenturyLink Cloud is increasing its worldwide infrastructure presence. CenturyLink global customers now have more options when planning their IT strategy, including the ability to optimize the distance between their cloud workloads and end users.

Customers hosting workloads in our existing German site (DE1) now have the ability to strengthen their Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery strategies in DE3, while adhering to German data sovereignty policies.

A core focus at CenturyLink is to help our customers through their digital transformation. Visit our location page to see how our services can help plan your business around the world.

CenturyLink Cloud enables customers with an easy-to-use interface, compelling value-for-performance and integrated managed services. This provides our customers with the business agility they want from a cloud provider, while delivering the security and scalability they need to host mission-critical enterprise applications.

While not available at launch, our Bare Metal Servers and next generation Object Storage products will also be offered in our DE3 location...

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