Technology Category
- Cybersecurity & Privacy - Cloud Security
- Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) - Hybrid Cloud
Applicable Industries
- Construction & Infrastructure
- National Security & Defense
Applicable Functions
- Maintenance
Use Cases
- Construction Management
- Tamper Detection
Services
- Cloud Planning, Design & Implementation Services
- Cybersecurity Services
About The Customer
The Make-a-Wish Foundation of America is a nonprofit organization that fulfills the wishes of children from 2½ to 18 years old suffering from a critical illness. The nonprofit has 59 independent chapters in the United States and Puerto Rico, and 39 international affiliates in nearly 50 other countries around the world. Founded in 1980, Make-a-Wish has granted hundreds of thousands of wishes to critically ill children, improving the quality of life for children and their families by promoting resilience and increasing well-being. The organization has about 2,500 employees, including those in regional chapters that the IT team provides with technology assistance.
The Challenge
In 2019, the Make-a-Wish Foundation was planning an IT transformation with a move to cloud infrastructure and SaaS applications. The organization had been using on-premises hardware and software to connect about 2,500 employees. However, the pandemic forced the nonprofit to shift to remote work, accelerating their cloud transformation by moving to Microsoft Azure. This rapid transition presented new security challenges. The foundation had to protect private data such as names, contact info, donation history, and medical records of wish recipients. The IT security team had to sort through thousands of alerts, identifying false positives from its on-prem environment and SaaS apps, and which required responses. The team also had to deal with the threat of business email compromise (BEC), a key attack vector for the organization.
The Solution
To address these challenges, the Make-a-Wish Foundation selected Expel Managed Detection and Response (MDR) for cloud infrastructure and SaaS apps. The solution provided 24×7 support and helped the team focus on the most urgent threats, instead of spending hours and days assessing noisy alerts. Expel MDR custom workflows and automations analyze and compare alerts in minutes, allowing the team to take action only when necessary. The solution integrates with Azure and apps like Office 365, providing granular details about critical issues. Expel unearths and highlights potential threats that the team alone wouldn’t have spotted, allowing them to quickly investigate and address threats. Expel’s centralized dashboards provide real-time visibility into threats, alerts, and actions taken, and also give the team a head start in remediating threats.
Operational Impact
Quantitative Benefit
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