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CROSSKEY SELECTS ALIENVAULT USM FOR IN-HOUSE SECURITY MANAGEMENT

Published by Gbaf News

Posted on March 13, 2015

2 min read
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Finnish card payment system provider gains complete security visibility and combats banking malware

Crosskey Enhances Security Management Operations

Crosskey – a Finnish company that develops and maintains its own banking systems and solutions for Nordic banks – is using AlienVault Unified Security Management (USM) for simplified security management of its card payment systems. The company handles the management of more than 3 million banking customers (half of Finland’s population) has now gained complete security visibility, meeting important PCI-DSS requirements.

Outsourcing Challenges and Compliance Needs

In terms of security, Crosskey had been outsourcing to an MSSP but increasing log volumes made this a challenge that was not cost-effective. In order to achieve PCI- DSS compliance, maintain a broad threat intelligence view and deal with the log increase, Crosskey has taken its security services in-house with AlienVault’s Unified Security Management (USM).

Key Features of AlienVault USM Platform

AlienVault’s USM platform combines five vital security capabilities which along with the threat intelligence and OTX integration gave it the edge over competing solutions.

“Customers expect their financial systems to be secure by default and one of our biggest drivers when searching for an improved security solution for our card payment systems was PCI compliance,” explained Kim Halavakoski, CSO, Crosskey. “We needed a solution that would not be resource or cost intensive. By using AlienVault’s Unified Security Management platform, with its correlation engine and threat intelligence, we were able to save on both of these fronts while still delivering effective security.”

Benefits of Unified Security and Alerting

The USM solution provides consolidated log management, security event and incident management, real-time threat analysis, and real-time vent and incident analysis, all with configurable alerting. Allowing Crosskey to improve both its security and visibility, yet use a smaller security team.

Future Security Threats and Ongoing Challenges

Halavakoski expects that in the future, breaches on payment systems will continuously be a problem and “finding badness” from environments will become increasingly difficult. Therefore, security products that incorporate threat intelligence, like USM, will become ever more important.

Key Takeaways

  • Crosskey, a Finnish provider of card payment systems serving over 3 million customers, implemented AlienVault USM to gain full security visibility and meet PCI‑DSS requirements.
  • Moving security in‑house with AlienVault USM allowed Crosskey to manage surging log volumes cost‑effectively, replacing expensive MSSP outsourcing.
  • AlienVault’s USM platform offers consolidated log management, SIEM, real‑time threat and incident analysis, and threat intelligence via OTX.
  • The solution enabled Crosskey to enhance security visibility while reducing resource usage and costs with a smaller security team.
  • Crosskey expects future challenges in detecting payment system breaches, highlighting increasing importance of threat‑intelligence‑enabled tools like USM.

References

Frequently Asked Questions

What is AlienVault USM?
AlienVault Unified Security Management (USM) is an all‑in‑one security platform providing asset discovery, vulnerability assessment, intrusion detection, behavioral monitoring, SIEM, and integrated threat intelligence (including OTX) from a single console.
Why did Crosskey switch from an MSSP to in‑house security?
Increasing log volumes made outsourcing to a MSSP inefficient and costly, and Crosskey needed more timely detection of issues and better control, especially to meet PCI‑DSS compliance.
How did AlienVault USM help Crosskey achieve compliance?
USM provided consolidated log management, real‑time analysis, and alerts, enabling Crosskey to meet important PCI‑DSS requirements while maintaining visibility and control over its payment systems.
What advantages did Crosskey gain with AlienVault USM?
They gained complete security visibility, effective threat detection powered by threat intelligence, cost savings, and the ability to operate with a smaller security team.
Why will threat‑intelligence‑enabled tools become increasingly important?
Crosskey anticipates that detecting breaches in payment environments will become harder over time, making solutions with integrated threat intelligence, like AlienVault USM, critical for identifying malicious activity.

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