Security and Compliance for Hundreds of Banking Networks

The Challenge: Central control of hundreds of separate networks for regulatory compliance

German savings banks must comply with extensive national and EU regulations pertaining to IT operations and network access and security.

An officially approved IT services provider was mandated to establish a complete view and granular control over the network of each subscribing bank, from one central console. Network operators at each participating bank also require the ability to detect and control every endpoint and shut down any device immediately.

Implementation: Ready for 430+ bank networks

Within two weeks, the multi-tenant implementation of BICS was fully operational and ready to roll out to savings banks across Germany. Since late 2010, over 50 banks per year with all their branches, ATMs and other endpoints have been onboarded as subscribers.

Several larger banking groups, meanwhile, chose to license directly from Auconet and meet their compliance and NAC requirements with an in-house Auconet BICS.

Solution: Multi-vendor, multi-tenant, cost-effective control over hundreds of networks

The service provider evaluated offerings from the leading network hardware vendors, but they:

• Lacked centrally-managed, MAC-based authorization of endpoint devices
• Were not designed with true multi-tenant and multi-vendor capability
• Required an expensive, on-site NAC appliance at each bank

These offerings were also incompatible with legacy devices – older switches and routers – provided by the same vendors. Conceived and designed for heterogeneous hardware and multi-tenancy, Auconet Business Infrastructure Control Solution (BICS) also stood out because it guarantees that every savings bank has real-time monitoring of its own network, while the service provider can oversee them all. BICS proved it can immediately identify and manage every router and switch from any manufacturer, and all ports and endpoints.

Support: Few staff needed

Throughout the service provider’s history of delivering BICS, operation has been stable and Auconet has received few support requests. Two part-time staffers handle all incoming requests, even with hundreds of tenants/customer banks.

Outcome

The majority of Germany’s savings banks now rely on Auconet-based infrastructure control. This multi-tenant implementation if BICS has achieved a stellar record of network management and access control for its growing base of users.

Benefits: A ready-made service offering

A key provider of IT services to the banking industry was able to quickly establish a scalable new service providing real-time endpoint visibility and access control over the entire multi-tenant network. Each bank using BICS has a parallel view and control over its own network, but is completely insulated from all other tenants.

• The network of 600,000 ports is persistently monitored, secured, and managed
• Real-time visibility and CMDB data for each bank of all its own routers, switches, ports, and endpoints – from a single console
• Quick detection and blocking when a rogue device is attached to a bank’s network
• Compliance with stringent EU banking regulations – with immediate control to detect, identify, enable or disable any network device, port, or endpoint

Today, savings banks in Europe’s largest economy meet security and network control requirements with Auconet BICS.