The data center could have prevented intruders from being able to enter the building by having a secure environment and room construction. The center should have the low visibility that is away from the high traffic of vehicles and pedestrians. The center should also have maximized structural protection by having full height walls and ceilings that are fire proof. Also, there should be a limited number of windows which have locks and are not excessively large. The number of doors should be limited to a few mostly just two, which are lockable preferably with the use of two-factor authentication. The center should also have redundant sources of energy and water. Finally, the center should limit visitors and also have increased surveillance throughout the entire place (Brett & Pierre, 2015). The most predictable method is having redundant sources of water and energy. This is because no one expects a data center to rely on only one source of energy and water just in case one is lost either through malicious or natural events.
One of the methods that could be used to protect data in assets such as PC, tablets, and servers after they are stolen is increased authentication and biometrics. The devices that have critical information can have inbuilt Two-factor authentication. The second method is encryption of files and folders both at rest and motion. The organization can choose the method of encryption that best suits their needs, examples include, Truecyrpt, Veracrypt, and DiskCryptor. The final method is remote wipe which can be used to permanently delete all the information on the stolen device. The method I believe would be most effective is encryption. When critical devices are lost or stolen and land in the hands of a professional can easily gain access, and the only way to ensure that the data is safe is through encryption. Also, encryption is effective in protecting both data in motion and at rest.
Reference
Brett, N. & Pierre, J. (2015) Towards a Secure Data Center Model. Information Systems Audit and Control Association Journal, 3 (2015).
https://www.isaca.org/Journal/archives/2015/Volume-3/Pages/toward-a-secure-data-center-model.aspx
