HP Discover 2013: Autonomy Legacy Data Cleanup To Delete Risky And Useless Data

Autonomy has announced Legacy Data Cleanup, a technology powered by Autonomy Controlpoint 4.0 that allows enterprises to dig deep into their storage to discover which data they can delete, reducing risk and capacity requirements.

Speaking at HP Discover in Las Vegas, Robert Youngjohns, general manager of HP Autonomy, said the new product would help companies deal with the growing amounts of “digital landfill” as they accumulate more data.

He said that although there was plenty of value to be found in such information if it is properly analysed, some of it was useless and some was potentially risky to hold on to.

Autonomy Legacy Data Cleanup

He added that CIOs tend to be split between keeping and deleting emails, but the risk of following either strategy was half and half. However Autonomy is set on ending the attitude of “if in doubt, keep it.”

Industries which may find Autonomy Legacy Data Cleanup useful include the financial sector, public sector any company with a large customer base. The technology could safeguard firms against fines for illegally holding onto data longer than they are allowed, or by deleting sensitive information that is no longer deleted.

It could also help companies save money on storage, as the cost of storage is not dropping at the rate of growth of data created by machines, business systems and humans.

Autonomy has endured a difficult few months since former members of its senior management team were accused of improper accounting practices designed to inflate the price HP paid for the Cambridge-based developer, which it acquired for $10.3 billion (£6.7bn) in 2011.

Stable autonomy

HP announced an $8.8 billion (£5.3 billion) writedown on the value of Autonomy in November, but CEO Meg Whitman has publicly stated her commitment to the division and Youngjohns told TechWeekEurope Autonomy was more stable and looking towards the future.

“We’ve got the business stable, which [HP] talked about at the last earnings announcement, which I was very pleased by,” he said. “I’m never sure if stable is actually a compliment, but it was a stage forward from where we were.

“I think we’re now focused on how we get the business back to growth and how we deliver real value back to HP.

“So right now, my focus is on achieving quarter-on-quarter revenue growth with the appropriate profitability. I think we’re on track right now to do that.”

Autonomy’s technology will form part of the Haven big data platform also announced at HP Discover, with HP discussing how its analytics products have helped US motorsport organisation NASCAR improve engagement with fans.

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