Consumer trends like smart homes, e-health and the internet of things are steadily moving into European households. However, threat complexity is growing along with the number of networked devices. These need simple yet efficient protection, despite the fact that they use a wide variety of different software and standards. The Hamburg-based security specialist Secucloud has developed a solution that responds to this requirement. With its Elastic Cloud Security System (ECS2), the company provides a cloud-based security infrastructure for mobile devices and private households that users can add to the subscription they have with their internet service provider (ISP) as an extra service. The independent security institute AV-TEST has now honoured this new security concept with its Innovation Award 2016.
The Innovation Award distinguishes products and concepts that demonstrate a forward-thinking strategy in IT security. So far in 2016, AV-TEST only awarded it for one other product – to the joint winners G Data and Microsoft. Secucloud is now the second winner this year. Secucloud CEO Dennis Monner accepted the prize at an award ceremony that took place on 1st September in Magdeburg, Germany. “Nowadays it just doesn’t make sense for people to get separate protection for each smartphone, e-book reader and fitness wristband,” notes Monner. “Mobile operators and internet service providers can make it much easier for them by providing comprehensive protection for all the connected devices in their customers’ homes – with no installation or update hassles. It’s based on high-performance, enterprise-class security that wouldn’t normally be accessible to an average consumer. This is the approach we’re taking with our solution.”
Industry-standard security from the cloud
To counter the growing complexity of internet-based threats, enterprise IT specialists have already been using combined solutions for some time – concepts like unified threat management and next-generation firewall systems. These protect the corporate network with a wide variety of security functionality, including intrusion detection and prevention systems (IDS/IPS), multi-AV engines, anti-phishing, application control, deep packet inspection (DPI), URL filtering and APT protection. However, managing maintenance and updates for these systems is both time-consuming and costly, which has made their use in private households unrealistic up to now.
As the first provider of its kind in Germany, Secucloud is now making this kind of advanced security system – built on industry standards – available to end users and consumers. The modular Elastic Cloud Security System (ECS2) is installed directly into the infrastructure of ISPs like Telekom, Vodafone and 1&1. As ECS2 was designed and developed from the outset as a cloud infrastructure for telecom operators, these companies can offer a scalable solution that provides real-time protection and security for every customer and on every device – with no need for any installation.
Each ECS2 system includes several analysers. The security instances process all internet traffic to and from the customers’ devices and apply all the preconfigured security and filter policies to it. Using highly sophisticated security technology, the intelligent algorithm based steering (IABS) engine creates real-time analyses of the overall threat situation and blocks attacks with the appropriate counter-measures. The innovative SAND SSL scan technology even makes this possible for the increasing amount of encrypted web traffic.
About AV-TEST
AV-TEST GmbH is an independent supplier of services in the fields of IT Security and Antivirus Research, focusing on the detection and analysis of the latest malicious software and its use in comprehensive comparative testing of security products. Due to the timeliness of the testing data, malware can instantly be analyzed and categorized, trends within virus development can be detected early, and IT-security solutions can be tested and certified. The AV-TEST Institute’s results provide an exclusive basis of information helping vendors to optimize their products, special interest magazines to publish research data, and end users to make good product choices. www.av-test.org.
The Innovation Award distinguishes products and concepts that demonstrate a forward-thinking strategy in IT security. So far in 2016, AV-TEST only awarded it for one other product – to the joint winners G Data and Microsoft. Secucloud is now the second winner this year. Secucloud CEO Dennis Monner accepted the prize at an award ceremony that took place on 1st September in Magdeburg, Germany. “Nowadays it just doesn’t make sense for people to get separate protection for each smartphone, e-book reader and fitness wristband,” notes Monner. “Mobile operators and internet service providers can make it much easier for them by providing comprehensive protection for all the connected devices in their customers’ homes – with no installation or update hassles. It’s based on high-performance, enterprise-class security that wouldn’t normally be accessible to an average consumer. This is the approach we’re taking with our solution.”
Industry-standard security from the cloud
To counter the growing complexity of internet-based threats, enterprise IT specialists have already been using combined solutions for some time – concepts like unified threat management and next-generation firewall systems. These protect the corporate network with a wide variety of security functionality, including intrusion detection and prevention systems (IDS/IPS), multi-AV engines, anti-phishing, application control, deep packet inspection (DPI), URL filtering and APT protection. However, managing maintenance and updates for these systems is both time-consuming and costly, which has made their use in private households unrealistic up to now.
As the first provider of its kind in Germany, Secucloud is now making this kind of advanced security system – built on industry standards – available to end users and consumers. The modular Elastic Cloud Security System (ECS2) is installed directly into the infrastructure of ISPs like Telekom, Vodafone and 1&1. As ECS2 was designed and developed from the outset as a cloud infrastructure for telecom operators, these companies can offer a scalable solution that provides real-time protection and security for every customer and on every device – with no need for any installation.
Each ECS2 system includes several analysers. The security instances process all internet traffic to and from the customers’ devices and apply all the preconfigured security and filter policies to it. Using highly sophisticated security technology, the intelligent algorithm based steering (IABS) engine creates real-time analyses of the overall threat situation and blocks attacks with the appropriate counter-measures. The innovative SAND SSL scan technology even makes this possible for the increasing amount of encrypted web traffic.
About AV-TEST
AV-TEST GmbH is an independent supplier of services in the fields of IT Security and Antivirus Research, focusing on the detection and analysis of the latest malicious software and its use in comprehensive comparative testing of security products. Due to the timeliness of the testing data, malware can instantly be analyzed and categorized, trends within virus development can be detected early, and IT-security solutions can be tested and certified. The AV-TEST Institute’s results provide an exclusive basis of information helping vendors to optimize their products, special interest magazines to publish research data, and end users to make good product choices. www.av-test.org.
