(Image Credit: iStockPhoto/stevanovicigor)
Nokia has launched a network-wide tool called NetGuard this morning, providing operators with an easy-to-use platform to monitor and control all the multi-vendor security systems deployed across its telecommunications network.
Since moving away from their handset business – after selling the division to Microsoft in 2013 – Nokia has focused on its network infrastructure business and is even in the process of acquiring French network equipment vendor Alcatel-Lucent.
Nokia's security tool will provide consumers and equipment manufacturers with more peace-of-mind when it comes to IoT deployments, with security concerns being one of the biggest concerns when it comes to adoption. In the Vodafone Barometer 2015, 64% of businesses responded that security and privacy are the most common obstacles in the way of machine-to-machine adoption.
Giuseppe Targia, Head of Security at Nokia, said: "Networks are becoming more heterogeneous and open, leaving them increasingly prone to cyberattacks. Any subsequent degradation of network performance, whether a partial or complete outage, is one of the biggest threats to operators. The impact of such an event can range from a few dissatisfied customers to severe damage to the entire business. Our NetGuard Security Management Center gives operators confidence that their whole networks are safe, not just some individually protected parts."
Along with providing quick detection and prevention of attacks, NetGuard Security Management Center also increases operational efficiency and lowers the total cost of security for operators through automated and consistent mass configuration of security policies, bulk firmware upgrades, and verification of vendor-specific security hardening settings.
NetGuard's solution at a glance:
- Security Management Center integrates all network security systems, regardless of vendor, to monitor security status and manage incidents, vulnerabilities, security policies and network access.
- The solution watches for threats in networks by proactively detecting security weaknesses and correlating them according to its internal database.
- Security analytics are then applied by a rules-based, configurable decision-making engine that triggers automatic corrective action or helps operators implement a manual response.
- The system optimizes the configuration of security parameters and thus reduces the risk of network infrastructure attacks.
- Unlike vertical solutions dedicated to protecting network elements, Security Management Center offers a comprehensive view of the whole network, correlating events coming from typically isolated layers such as radio access, transport, core and operations to detect and mitigate a wider range of threats.
Dr. Stefan Pütz, Vice President of Network Security at Deutsche Telekom, said: "We at Deutsche Telekom highly appreciate Nokia's approach, which comprehensively addresses security with a consolidated solution that brings much greater value than the sum of individual security modules. For instance, with the automated security audit together with security alarm correlation, we will be able to pinpoint attacks that today's networks simply cannot detect."
With cyber attacks on the rise, NetGuard will be a useful weapon in the fight against malicious network activity through providing carriers and IoT service providers with a more holistic approach in responding to attacks.
Do you think NetGuard will help to boost IoT adoption? Share your thoughts in the comments.
Interested in hearing industry leaders discuss subjects like this and sharing their IoT use-cases? Attend the IoT Tech Expo World Series events with upcoming shows in Silicon Valley, London and Amsterdam to learn more.
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