Securely enabling mobile advisors in a complex distribution model

In the hyper-connected, regulated, and distributed world of financial services, where both money and sensitive data are transmitted between many actors and entities daily, one financial services organization and their chief information security officer (CISO) were desperately seeking visibility, insight, and empowerment.

They needed to enable a secure mobile experience for hundreds of independent financial partners and tens of thousands of clients. This organization recognized that most technology solutions were not designed for the challenging mobile needs of their business.  They wanted to provide seamless user experience supported by a proven, hardened VPN so that communication of confidential material was absolutely secure. They were looking for a solution that would detect advanced attacks – even unusual, suspicious behavior that has no signature but may indicate a breach from inside or out.

After identifying the necessary baseline tools, the CISO concluded he would need at tool that:

• Gives visibility into all activity on the network
• Provides actionable information on attacks
• Is usable by non-security personnel
• Provides the best possible mobile user experience
• Requires minimal care and feeding
• Delivers a trustworthy vendor focused on relationship

His evaluation criteria for Advanced Threat Management (ATM) solutions was that he needed an appliance based option with data stored onsite, unique and innovative algorithms, strong referrals or an existing trust relationship, an easy to use interface, strong customer support, the primary function to be ATM as opposed to an add-on, sales and support staff that understands the product, and awards or recognition from third parties.

• Visibility: Ability to respond to more real attacks rather than wasting time
• Insight: Team was able to prioritize alarms based on configurable rankings
• Experience: Advisors had more powerful data access and reported higher user experience
• Support: Highly knowledgeable and available support team round the clock for reviews