WWT's AI Readiness Model for Operational Resilience (ARMOR) framework

World Wide Technology's AI Readiness Model for Operational Resilience (ARMOR) is a practical framework for securing AI and high-performance computing environments. ARMOR is built on real-world expertise and addresses the most urgent security challenges organizations face today. The framework is organized into different domains, each offering actionable guidance and maturity models for organizations at any stage of their AI journey:

AI Governance, Risk and Compliance
Secure AI Operations
Model Protection
Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC)
Infrastructure Security
Data Protection
Cyber Resilience

Each domain is authored by subject matter experts and provides practical, vendor-agnostic insights for building resilient, compliant and innovative AI ecosystems.

Data protection: What you'll find inside

This section focuses on protecting your organization's most valuable asset—its data. In today's hybrid and multicloud environments, data sprawl and complexity create new risks. ARMOR's data protection guidance introduces a data-centric, zero trust approach that protects data wherever it resides and whoever accesses it.

Key principles and strategies

Data-centric security: Protect data at its source and throughout its lifecycle, applying zero trust principles and continuous validation.
Unified governance and compliance: Centralize data security management, enforce consistent policies and meet regulations like GDPR and SEC.
Risk management: Identify gaps, prioritize controls and manage data security proactively.
Technological integration: Use advanced technologies for encryption, key management and automated risk management across cloud and on-premises environments.
Proactive measures: Implement data discovery, classification, exposure analysis and posture management to monitor and protect sensitive data.

AI-specific strategies

The section addresses the unique challenges of AI workloads, including best practices for protecting AI training data, managing frequent snapshots for granular recovery and supporting Kubernetes and Linux environments. It also covers robust backup solutions for high-performance computing (HPC) settings where traditional integration is limited.

Maturity model

ARMOR provides a maturity model for AI data protection, helping organizations assess current practices and chart a path toward integrated governance, comprehensive risk management and strong compliance. Whether your processes are ad hoc or fully automated, the model offers clear benchmarks for improvement.

Relevant frameworks and standards

ARMOR aligns with leading frameworks such as the NIST Cybersecurity Framework, GDPR, HIPAA and ITIL, so your data protection strategy meets industry and regulatory requirements.

Who should read this and why

This section is for security leaders, IT architects, compliance officers and anyone responsible for protecting organizational data in AI and HPC environments. If your organization is dealing with data sprawl, regulatory complexity or the risks of AI-driven innovation, the Data Protection domain provides practical insights and actionable steps to build resilience and compliance.

Why keep reading

Learn how a data-centric approach transforms your security posture
Find best practices for protecting AI workloads and hybrid environments
Benchmark your organization's maturity and identify steps for improvement
Build confidence that your data protection strategy is robust, scalable and aligned with global standards

Unlock the full report for in-depth guidance, implementation approaches and expert insights to help you build a resilient, compliant and recovery-ready data protection program. Empower your organization to innovate securely and confidently.