Client: Playtonic Games
Industry: Video Game Development
Objective: To strengthen Playtonic Games’ security posture by implementing a comprehensive email protection and backup solution that mitigates impersonation threats, enhances threat visibility, and safeguards Microsoft 365 data.
The Challenge
Playtonic Games is a British independent video game developer and producer with 57 employees. As Systems Manager for an internationally recognised studio, Tim Hill was responsible for ensuring both staff and intellectual property were properly protected against malicious cyber activity.
The company was experiencing an influx of inbound email threats, with impersonation attacks being a particular issue. Cyber criminals were posing as company directors in an attempt to manipulate new employees, which is a form of social engineering that can be as difficult for individuals to identify as it is for email gateways to detect. This made phishing a persistent concern for IT professionals like Tim.
Alongside this, Tim needed a reliable backup solution to protect Playtonic’s Microsoft 365 data. Microsoft does not provide secure, comprehensive backups for user data and advises organisations to implement third-party backup solutions. For a video game studio, where a system failure could wipe out weeks of work, dependable backup and recovery are essential. To address both challenges, Tim turned to ARO, an organisation he already had a positive working relationship with.
The Implementation and Solution
For Playtonic Games’ security, the solution required advanced technology backed by strong support. Having previously worked with ARO and Barracuda products, Tim knew where to go for help strengthening Playtonic’s security posture.
After reviewing the requirements, ARO and Playtonic selected Barracuda Total Email Protection for Microsoft 365 as the most effective option. This single suite brings together multiple layers of email security to defend against all types of inbound threats. Crucially, it includes a dedicated impersonation protection layer, directly addressing the primary concern. The solution also incorporates Barracuda’s industry-leading Cloud-to-Cloud Backup service.
With the deployment complete, the team now has far greater confidence in the protection of their Microsoft 365 environment. Visibility into email threats has improved significantly, and the business is better equipped to respond quickly and effectively. Total Email Protection ensures impersonation attacks are stopped before they reach employees, while cloud-to-cloud backup provides rapid access to essential data in the event of accidental deletion or unexpected issues.
“We’ve now got confidence that there’s a better backup of our data in 365. We also have much better visibility of email threats and we’re better equipped to take appropriate action.” – Tim Hill, Systems Manager, Playtonic Games
The Impact
As an MSP, delivering fast, high-quality technical support is central to how ARO serves its customers. For Playtonic, this proved to be a major factor in choosing to partner with ARO again. Tim highlighted that “the speed and quality of support was a key factor in the decision to work with ARO again. The main implementation was done in a few hours and some refinements were made on a follow-up session.”
Tim also praised the overall experience of working with ARO’s Technical team. He worked closely with them throughout the project and noted that they were consistently proactive, responsive, and helpful. “I worked closely with the Technical team who were excellent at following up on queries and providing technical support.” he shared. “Both of my main points of contact have been fantastic to work with and were very helpful through every step of the process from the initial conversation about the solution to implementation and ongoing support and assistance.”
With this level of communication and support in place, Tim and the wider Playtonic team can now focus on their work with confidence, knowing they are protected against email-based threats.
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