The Works - Convergent Communications Employs Advanced Network Security

Convergent looked to Argus for security solutions because of that company's experience in industries such as banking, where computing system security is mission critical. Also, Argus employs a methodology that takes into account that the next-generation telephone networks are based on open Unix computing platforms, rather than the closed, highly specialized systems that support Class 5 switches.

"The new switches become kind of targets for telecom-oriented hackers," says Greg Tennant, senior vice president of enterprise broadband services at Convergent Communications. "You can create some level of protection with firewalls, but you can't encrypt voice traffic because it would ruin performance. So you have to find a way to protect this new platform that is sitting in a relatively open environment and keep people from attacking it and bringing it down." Convergent plans to deploy softswitches and gateways by Cisco Systems Inc. (www.cisco.com) as it debuts a new nationwide service aimed at business customers.

Widely deployed methods, such as firewalls, "apply security in the application space and ignore the operating system," says Randall Sandone, president and CEO of Argus. Most hacker attacks involve the use of "mobile code," small applications that travel over networks. "It is an incontrovertible fact that any security that is put into an application or any security application can be rendered completely useless by a successful attack on the operating system." The main Argus product, PitBull, is designed to work with Sun platforms.

The Argus approach also involves limiting access to the operating system, not just by unwanted code but also by service provider staff. In most systems, operators get a blanket "administrator" status, and there is no hierarchy of access. Operators making simple changes to the system have the same powers as the chief IT officer. Argus provides a way to give very limited access to a system and to give widely varied levels of access.

Besides operating system security, Argus recommends a strong authentication system as well as encryption of traffic where possible. Convergent has combined the Argus system with fraud detection software in order to understand what kinds of hacking activities are occurring.

A new intrusion system for detecting and "fingerprinting" potential hackers was announced in March by GTE Federal Network Systems (FNS), a unit of GTE Corp. (www.gte.com). GTE FNS' NetFacade system confuses unauthorized intruders by creating false network services that mimic actual network services. It also gathers information on attack methodologies to help administrators change firewalls to repel the new intruders.

Tennant says Convergent is still considering how to offer the Argus technology to its customers, but will have a portfolio of security measures. "We do offer customers a series of enterprise-enabled services as well as e-business services, where we are evaluating the use of this platform. Security is like insurance. Customers will insure themselves to the level where they want protection. They can start with basic insurance, such as password protection up to basic firewalling up to elaborate state-based firewalling up to encryption, and then we can get to a more-robust secure operating system approach, such as Argus."

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