Archive for the ‘Security Solutions’ Category

Home → Security Solutions

Saving Money With SFTP – The Best Way To Cut Costs, Improve Security And Achieve Compliance

On April 9, 2009   /   Security Solutions, Website Security   /   Leave a comment

Everyone is looking to cut costs in the recession, but there is one solution which many companies don’t realise has the potential to save money for minimal investment and minimal disruption, which also can provide fast ROI.

A lot of organisations still have legacy systems and are happy to live with them, given the huge upheaval and potential expense which replacement would mean. But those legacy systems have some costly aspects to them, which can easily be improved and which offer the potential for savings.

FTP file transfer from legacy systems normally goes on in the background without anyone paying too much attention to it. It’s the part of legacy systems which is below the surface and which gets taken for granted.

Many companies rely on FTP for file transfer, however there are a number of issues which make FTP ripe for improvement and offer companies the potential to cut costs and gain ROI. The solution to the problems of FTP is to use SFTP (secure file transfer protocol) instead.

The problems with FTP

* security
* compliance
* performance
* cost

Security
Built in the 1970s, FTP has become an auditor’s nightmare and a major security loophole due to clear text authentication and data transmission, anonymous access, bounce attack, use of ephemeral ports and lack of host identification.

With FTP
- you can’t use strong authentication
- you can’t use strong encryption
- it lacks data integrity

SFTP is a strongly encrypted file transfer protocol that easily traverses firewalls and authenticates the host and the client.

Performance
Performance with FTP is poor, especially with ever-increasing file sizes and an ever-increasing number of files to be transferred, resulting in too much server time being taken up and too many valuable staff tied up with file transfer administration.
Performance can be greatly enhanced with the right SFTP solution.

Cost
Server capacity and management time are crucial considerations in a recession. Because of SFTP’s potentially superior performance over FTP, you don’t need as much server capacity to do file transfers, resulting in cost savings; and you need less valuable staff to administer file transfers, again resulting in cost benefits.

As your security is improved, you won’t be at such risk of the financial consequences of security problems such as data leakage; and you will be able to avoid any financial consequences of non-compliance.

If you’ve got multiple legacy systems, then consolidating into one SFTP supplier will cut down on your maintenance and other work around those legacy systems.

Compliance
The past ten years have seen regulations and industry standards becoming increasingly important. SFTP helps organisations achieve their compliance objectives by improving security to the standards required today. It protects mission-critical information in transit, guaranteeing its integrity and preventing unauthorised access.

Improved infrastructure
Switching to SFTP, or from one SFTP supplier to another, is not just about saving money. It’s also about improving infrastructure efficiency. Replacing FTP with an efficient SFTP solution will ensure enterprises are compliant with security requirements and will at the same provide much improved performance and scalability, together with good management and reporting.

All SFTP solutions are not created equal
It’s crucial to review the choices in SFTP systems because there are huge differences in performance, which can affect the ability to gain ROI on investment.

Recent tests (December 2008) by Tolly1 reviewed three leading secure shell solutions

* Open Text Connectivity Secure Server 1.0

* Attachmate Corp. Reflection for Secure IT Server 6.1

* SSH Communications Tectia Server 6.0

Key findings were:

* Open Text delivered the highest performance and maximum scalability of the three secure server products tested.

* In tests, transferring a 36 Mb file from a server to a requesting client, Open Text Connectivity Secure Server completed the task 10x faster than Tectia Server and 24 times faster than Attachmate’s Reflection for Secure IT Server. In single session and multi-session tests, Open Text Connectivity Secure Server routinely outperformed the two other products tested.

* Open Text costs up to 12x less to support 1,000 concurrent FSTP connections than the other two solutions tested.

* Open Text completed 1,000 SFTP file transfer sessions from four PC clients on a single server while Attachmate and SSH Tectia servers failed to scale properly

* Open Text imposed less overhead on host server CPU than the other products tested

* Open Text used 9x less CPU memory than the other two solutions to complete a 36 Mb file transfer to client

Cost implications

Open Text was the only product to scale successfully to 1024 sessions. This means it can be deployed on just a single server, saving on hardware costs, space, and associated deployment and ongoing support costs.

Tolly concluded that users would spend

5,600$ to support 1000 sessions with Open Text
14,000$ for SSH
60,000$ for Attachmate

Open Text Connectivity Secure Server 1.0
Connectivity Secure Server 1.0 is a state of the art Secure Shell solution from Hummingbird, The Open Text Connectivity Solutions Group. Hummingbird was the creator of Exceed and Exceed on Demand, and the industry choice for UNIX-based applications remote access. It plugs into any TCP/IP network and offers strong authentication mechanisms, government grade encryption algorithms, and content integrity protection methods for data in transit.

Connectivity Secure Server provides -

- better performance.
- faster file transfer
- better up-time
- smaller memory and CPU consumption
- support for a higher number of simultaneous user sessions
- time-saving central administration console

Complete point-to-point security solution
Connectivity Secure Server can be used in conjunction with other Open Text (formerly Hummingbird) security products: Connectivity Secure Shell, the Secure Shell add-on for Exceed and Host Explorer; or Connectivity SecureTerm, the only web and desktop based stand alone Secure Shell client on the market. All products include FIPS 140-2 certified Hummingbird Cryptographic Module for increased security.

You can access the Tolly report here..

For queries, please contact Wick Hill on 01483 227600, web www.wickhill.com

A Wick Hill/Open Text Connectivity Solutions Group (formerly known as Hummingbird) white paper. By Ian Kilpatrick, chairman Wick Hill Group

Read more →
Back to Top

VoIP and Security – Associated Issues

On April 1, 2009   /   Security Solutions   /   Leave a comment

VoIP SystemThere are a number of security issues associated with VoIP. Eavesdropping is a concern with both PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network) and VoIP calls, but there are also other concerns that are unique to VoIP technology.

Since VoIP data is travelling through the Internet the same as any other kind of data, it is vulnerable to the same kind of attacks. There are many software tools available to hackers who wish to retrieve information that is being transmitted over the Internet, and these tools are just as effective with voice data as with any other kind of data.

While this may not be a concern when you are calling your Aunt Mary, it is a big concern for businesses that may routinely use telephone communication for discussing sensitive business information. Due to the increasing popularity of VoIP, security is a big concern and is receiving a lot of attention.

There are a number of points in the transmission of a VoIP call that a hacker can retrieve information from. As well as retrieving actual conversations, hackers could also get information like user identities and VoIP phone numbers. With this information, a hacker can make phone calls with someone else’s identity.

Attackers could also record phone calls to listen to conversations and possibly even to restructure voice data to create conversations that never actually existed. Log files could also be accessed and altered.

There are a number of ways these security concerns can be addressed. The first is with encryption that provides the same kind of security as when sending credit card information over a secure data connection. The second is to separate VoIP data from other Internet traffic by using a Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN). Both of these methods can adversely affect call quality, but could be used optionally if the calls are sensitive.

Another security threat that hasn’t actually been seen yet is the possibility of sending viruses with VoIP data. Viruses could potentially overload VoIP networks causing delays and reduction in sound quality.

VoIP is not invulnerable to spam either. In fact, there is already a name for it — SPIT — Spam over Internet Telephony. This refers to receiving unwanted marketing calls from companies trying to sell services or products.

Is My VoIP Service Secure?

For the individual consumer, VoIP security is mostly a matter of preventing others from eavesdropping on conversations. Some VoIP service providers offer voice security through the means of encryption or separate data routes. Regular precautions for transferring files always need to be followed. Any data or program that is downloaded should be checked for viruses, and a firewall should be in place for protecting your computer from the Internet.

Hardware VoIP devices, on the other hand, are more vulnerable to attack. Some types of equipment can be rendered unstable or don’t even work if they receive certain types of data. Some Internet phones are also susceptible to data piracy, revealing private information under specific conditions.

Businesses in particular need to be concerned about security issues surrounding VoIP. Since many businesses operate their own gateways and other equipment for connecting to the Internet, they are more susceptible to the Denial of Service (DOS) attacks or other kinds of malicious hacking.

The VoIP system featured in our image is the ooma Core VoIP Phone System with No Monthly Phone Service Bills, a great choice if your in the market for a new setup. View Amazon’s full range online here…

Read more →
Back to Top

Secure Access with Computer Security Biometrics Software

On March 21, 2009   /   Security Solutions   /   Leave a comment

Biometrics SoftwareIn order to know who is who and what their security level is, computer security biometrics software is being increasingly used in computer security. Biometrics is a system that uses information technology to measure and recognize physical characteristics of people.

With this data, a computer biometrics security system can compare requests for entry or access to data with the profile of a person that it has stored in its database. A few years ago such systems and software were viewed almost as science fiction, but they are now commonplace in many environments and the trend is growing.

In the not too distant future we can expect to see biometric software to increase computer security levels in applications such as e-commerce and access to cell phones and cars. This is in addition to the work being done on authorization of access.

Biometrics is now being used in 3D software for the even more precise recognition of a person’s face and physical characteristics. In this way, it becomes virtually impossible for someone to try to trick the security biometrics software by presenting a two dimensional photo.

Here are some of the applications that computer security biometrics software will allow:

Passive surveillance of people entering different locations, where surveillance cameras monitor entrances to all rooms to accurately capture information on the people who enter. This information can be compared almost instantaneously with a database of millions of profiles and can alert to security staff if a match is found with a known suspect.

Access authorization by facial recognition: the systems already exist to recognize people who request access to a particular facility. They require that the subject be situated relatively close to the camera and that the lighting be also adapted to recognition. In the future, however, these systems will be able to identify people in a variety of different situations, distances and lighting.

The information that is gathered in the first two examples can then be processed by backend computer security software. This software will use biometric comparisons and alert security staff via telephone, mobile, or any other available communication device if there is a problem.

Considerable investments are being made today in product development for these biometric applications. The initial results confirm the interest of investors in this area and the product offerings will be reinforced in the coming years with improved performance and capabilities. The market potential is considerable: both government agencies and corporate businesses have requirements to maintain strict security and these systems are a solution for that.

The only aspect that hasn’t yet been worked out is the inter operability of such computer security software and systems. An international organization for standardizing biometric products exists and different suppliers of biometric security solutions should in the future be able to connect with one another.

Buyers will then have better choice and more assurance of fully interoperable solutions. Computer security biometrics software is therefore a growing field with much still to do, but that already has impressive panoply of product offerings.

For the consumer there is an ever expanding range of products utilizing biometrics on the market. A couple of products that drew my attention where a mouse and a flash drive with fingerprint recognition. View these solutions on amazon.com today..

Read more →
Back to Top
Page 9 of 9« First...56789

Extra Security

FREE Security Updates

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Best Security Sites

Computers Business Directory - BTS Local TopOfBlogs