As the workforce becomes wireless so does the ... - Connect-World

More documents

Recommendations

Info

Strong authenticationthat it is absolutely essential that this kind ofinformation remains well protected.The answer to security challenges createdby the increased use of wireless technologyis strong authentication. The use of strongauthentication or two-factor authenticationsolutions allows identifying the person tryingto access a corporate network or application,allowing only authorized users and keepingall the other ones out. The principle of strongauthentication is quite simple. Classic logonmethods usually require only a usernameand a password to gain access to a networkor application. Strong authentication alwaysrequires more than one factor to log on,which is why it is also called two-factorauthentication. Usually, it is a combinationof something you know, like a password ora PIN-code, and something you have, forinstance a smart card or an authenticationdevice. Most people are actually alreadyfamiliar with the principle of two-factorauthentication, without being aware of it.For instance, when you need to withdrawcash from an ATM, you use your bankcard(something you have) and your PIN-code(something you know). Suppose your bankcard gets stolen, the thief would still needyour code to gain access to your bankaccount. And if anyone was able to guessor to intercept your PIN, they would stillneed your bank card. It is obvious that thecombination of the two factors ensures amuch higher level of security than the use ofonly one factor.The same principle can be applied inenterprise security. Today’s enterprises oftendeal with similar authentication challenges,such as securing remote access. Remoteaccess to company networks and applicationsgoes hand in hand with the increased use oflaptops and other mobile devices, and offersmany advantages. Today’s employees workfrom home, or on the road. Enterprises thatare operating worldwide hire employees allover the world, allowing them to work fromremote home offices while still being ableto access all the necessary applications. Butthey need to ensure that only authorized usersare able to gain access to important data andcorporate information; remote access needsto be effectively secured. If remote access isonly secured with a weak static password, itbecomes easy for fraudsters to intercept orsimply to guess the password.Most people tend to use easy to rememberpasswords, such as their pet’s name or theirchildren’s birthday. This kind of informationcan be easily obtained, for instance fromsocial network websites such as Facebook.Imposing a strict password policy rarelyhelps, as complex passwords and regularpassword changes tend to be confusing formany employees. This often results in thewriting down of passwords, which is ofcourse all but helpful in improving security.Strong authentication drastically increasesthe security level of remote access solutions.Authentication devices are able to generateso called dynamic or one-time passwords(OTPs), which replace the use of staticpasswords. Dynamic passwords are valid fora limited amount of time and can be usedonly once. This means that even if a fraudsterwas able to intercept a password, they wouldnot be able to use it again. The employee isonly able to log on using something theyknow, for instance a username or a PINcode,and something they own, meaning theauthenticator used to generate the dynamicpassword. This solution is not only veryeffective, protecting the corporate resourcesfrom unauthorized access, but also veryuser friendly, as it becomes unnecessary toremember complex passwords or changethem on a regular basis.Strong authentication can be used not onlyto secure remote access, but also all othercorporate applications. One of today’s ICTtrends is Software as a Service (SaaS), theuse of web-based company applicationshosted on external platforms. This trendalso goes hand in hand with the flourishingof wireless technology, as you only needan Internet connection to be able to accessyour company’s web-based applications.Having a laptop or a netbook, employeescan work with these applications anywhereand anytime. The principle of strong twofactorauthentication can be applied here aswell. Employees will use an authenticatorto generate a one-time password and log insafely, ensuring that only authorized usersgain access to the application.One of the big advantages of strongauthentication devices is that they can takethe form of hardware as well as softwareauthenticators. Hardware authenticators areusually little devices, which can be carriedaround easily in a pocket, a purse or even ona key ring. Software authenticators also comein different forms and can be installed on theuser’s computers, laptops and even mobilephones. In the context of the increasing use ofwireless technology, this is a very importantfeature. Employees already equipped withlaptops, smartphones or even regular mobilephones, can use these mobile devices toimplement an authentication solution. Thisway, the same tools used to benefit fromthe advantages of wireless technology alsobecome the carriers of the authenticationsolutions used to secure access to corporatenetworks and applications.In today’s enterprise context, wirelesssolutions offer many advantages. Bothemployees and companies benefit from theincreased mobility and flexibility. Employeesare able to work anywhere at anytime,allowing better time management and a betterbalance between work and private life. Thecompany can manage the communication andinformation flow more effectively, keepingeveryone constantly up to date. But wirelesstechnology also brings along an increasedrisk of possible identity theft and abuse, andneeds to be effectively secured before it canbe turned into a strategic advantage. Strongauthentication drastically decreases the riskof password abuse and allows employeesand companies to fully benefit from theopportunities offered by the increasing use ofwireless technology. •14 • North America 2010
The three Mobile states payment Mobile of broadband systemsaccessBroadband is like water for thirsty enterprisesby Danny Bowman, President, Integrated Solutions Group, Sprint NextelThe introduction of high-speed broadband over wireless connections enables true ‘everythingwireless’ubiquity. For enterprises this turns emerging wireless technology into a powerfulagent for change, enabling capabilities that can have a transformative effect on operations,cost structure and market-making strategy.Danny Bowman is President of Sprint Nextel’s Integrated Solutions Group (ISG). Mr Bowman served as President - iDEN from June2008 to August 2009 and has served in various executive positions including Product Development and Management, Sales, Marketing,and General Management since 1997.Danny Bowman is a graduate of Evangel College in Springfield, Missouri, and holds a degree in Business Management. He also holds aLeadership Certificate from the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University in Washington, DC.Seasoned executives know all too well thatmarket forces never cease driving companiesto become more competitive. However thepast couple of years have brought an unusuallysevere test - with a drought in both demand andcapital that has challenged enterprises in everyindustry sector. Whether economic recoverycomes slowly or quickly, companies are in needof relief, and many will find significant supportfrom what could be an unexpected source.That source has been described in many ways,but perhaps most succinctly by Connect-World’s term, the ‘everything-wireless world’.While an ‘everything-wireless’ environmentcertainly won’t solve the global problems ofdemand creation and investment, it wouldbe a mistake to underestimate its impact onindividual companies as they manage throughthose challenges. Enterprises are in factdiscovering what a powerful change agentwireless can be. The primary driver is foundin the one characteristic of emerging wirelesstechnology which enables true ‘everythingwireless’ubiquity - the advent of high-speedbroadband over wireless connections.As we have seen with Sprint’s introductionof 4G in the United States, high-bandwidthconnectivity that was once available only in afixed wireline form is beginning to ripple outwirelessly to embrace mobile workforces andmany more assets. Corporate managers arelearning to think of broadband as more thanmere efficiency-expanding speed. In fact, it hasfar-reaching implications, enabling capabilitiesthat can have a transformative effect onoperations, cost structure and market-makingstrategy itself.Put simply, broadband is like water for thirstyenterprises. At one level, enterprises thirst forways to streamline operations and increaseproductivity. Beyond this, companies need tocreate more product value from scarce capital,while generating a faster return on investment.Whatever the need, the thirst-slaking ‘water’of broadband is nothing less than a vital lifesustainingelement for enterprise today.Yet as indispensable as broadband now is,the process of applying broadband’s variedmanifestations in the commercial environmentremains in its infancy. To understand why this isthe case, it is helpful to consider how broadbandis taking on different forms as it drives theevolution to everything-wireless.The three states of broadbandLike water itself, we can think of broadband asexisting in three potential forms:- where water can be solid ice, broadbandconnections can be fixed in particularlocations;- where water can be fluid, broadband canbe mobile, flowing seamlessly from oneplace to another;- where water can be diffused into thevery atmosphere itself, broadband canthoroughly permeate our work andlifestyles through a vast network ofdispersed electronic devices, both fixedand mobile.Each of these broadband states progressivelycontains, and releases, a higher level ofpurposeful human energy. Considered thisway, we can see that broadband is evolvingfrom a nuts-and-bolts necessity for businessoperations into a highly dynamic, shape-shiftingphenomenon that can significantly influencestrategic approaches across multiple industries.As we will see, it is already doing just that.Broadband’s impact on businesses is abundantat every stage of its development, beginningwith its fixed wireline form.Enterprises have long designed their ITinfrastructures around fixed broadband. Sincethe number of Internet hosts worldwide firstsurpassed 10,000 in 1987, the use of carrier-North America 2010 • 15
Page 2: I WANT TO TAKETHE LAST FIVE MINUTES
Page 11 and 12: Optical Mobile wireless payment Mob
Page 13 and 14: Spectrum Mobile and payment capacit
Page 15: Mobile Strong payment Mobile authen
Page 19 and 20: Mobile The payment Mobile 4G LTE sy
Page 21 and 22: Mobile payment Mobile Mobile offloa
Page 23 and 24: THE WORLD’S LARGEST BROADBAND EVE
Page 25 and 26: Wireless Mobile enterprise payment
Page 27 and 28: Automation Mobile payment and Mobil
Page 29 and 30: LTE-enabled Mobile payment M2M Mobi
Page 31 and 32: Wireless Mobile application payment
Page 33: Mobile payment Mobile backhaul syst
Page 36 and 37: Smoothing mobile broadband peaksAda
Page 38 and 39: Policy-driven optimizationManaging
Page 40 and 41: Mobile workforce managementAs the w
Page 42: YES! Send me the following Connect-

As the workforce becomes wireless so does the ... - Connect-World

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?