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April 16, 2003
Nortel Networks Brings Comprehensive Security to IP Telephony
Enhanced Security Measures Bolster Traditional, IP Telephony for Enterprises
SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Nortel Networks* [NYSE/TSX: NT] announced a combination of the company’s leading voice and security technologies to create the means for enterprise customers to protect their entire communications infrastructure. Secure Telephony is designed to provide leading security measures that cross functional boundaries regardless of whether customers rely on traditional circuit-switched telephony, are at any stage of the migration to implement IP (Internet Protocol) telephony, are implementing wireless IP telephony, or are using a pure IP telephony solution.
As IP telephony continues to gain momentum in the market, customers are compelled to ensure the security of these systems and applications. To address this requirement, Nortel Networks has established prescriptive plans tailored to any stage of the adoption of IP telephony, regardless of where an enterprise might be in its evolution. “Ensuring the well being of our patients is the most important consideration for our hospital,” said Gustavo Ortiz, IS manager, ValleyCare Health System. “We need to be certain that our healthcare professionals receive the right information at the right time, regardless of where they are on the campus. At the same time, while we have to ensure patient data is readily-accessible, we also have to be certain that their data is safe and secure and their privacy enforced.” “As we migrate to IP telephony for business benefit reasons, the security of our voice traffic is just as critical as the protection of our patients’ data,” Ortiz said. “We have relied on Nortel Networks data networking and telephony equipment to provide our communications infrastructure and are very pleased with the performance and security. Extending these security capabilities to our high-quality, IP-based voice traffic gives us the confidence that conversations remain private and our patients’ information remains confidential.” Nortel Networks is uniquely able to provide security for the communications infrastructure based on the company’s voice heritage and expertise, as well as its industry-leading data security portfolio. To provide seamless security across the infrastructure, Nortel Networks Secure Telephony includes the tailored plans, as well as new features in critical platforms that provide the strongest security measures available. “Security for telephony is on par, if not greater, than the need for securing a company’s data,” said Oscar Rodriguez, president, Enterprise Solutions, Nortel Networks. “Especially as companies take advantage of the great business potential associated with the move to IP telephony, the threats of intercepted communications, toll-fraud and denial of service attacks increase. Unfortunately, comprehensive security is not simply a feature that can be turned on. Providing holistic security to the communication infrastructure requires a secure architecture, best security practices, hardened platforms and operating systems as well as education and comprehensive audits.” Secure Telephony is part of Nortel Networks enterprise vision, “One network. A world of choice.” The vision is designed to enable businesses of all sizes and industries to engage their customers, partners, suppliers and employees in order to boost revenue, reduce costs, enhance customer service and increase productivity. Secure Telephony relies on multi-layered security based on the principles of Nortel Networks Security in the DNA philosophy, ensuring that each component of the communication infrastructure contributes to the global security effort. Extending the Security in the DNA philosophy to Secure Telephony rests on three areas. The first, Security Best Practices, relies on comprehensive security audits.- Best Practices provide physical isolation of discrete areas of the network through virtual local area networks and firewalls, designed to ensure that the voice network component would not be accessible in an intrusion event, for example.
- Providing secure network operations, administration and management through authentication and access control, as well as using encryption for access, is designed to ensure that the network cannot be disrupted or allow interlopers to steal services.
- Encrypting voice traffic traversing public networks is another aspect that further protects critical and proprietary information, regardless of whether that traffic is carried on the traditional circuit-switched lines, via hybrid or pure IP telephony and via wireless IP telephony.
- Finding configuration holes in the network and fixing them quickly with sophisticated Intrusion Detection tools is critical in closing unauthorized access points.
- Fixing configuration holes to derail potential toll-fraud attacks via validated audit tools is designed to ensure the Meridian 1 PBXs and Succession 1000 IP PBXs will be impervious to external breaches.
- The secure management of the IP telephony infrastructure by encrypting passwords and enforcing user access via profiles is highly recommended. The Optivity Telephony Manager allows easy implementation of this policy.
- Nortel Networks has taken measures to harden the operating systems of key platforms that support IP telephony by using unique operating system (OS) software and disabling access services, like file transfer protocol or simple network management protocol, when those services are not required.
- Succession 1000, Succession MX (Multimedia Exchange), Succession Business Communications Manager and Meridian 1 have all undergone OS upgrades that make the platforms more resistant to malicious viruses and hacker attacks by testing the platforms against known viruses and security attacks in a laboratory setting.
- Meridian 1 and Succession portfolios are equipped with strong telephony security application measures that restrict unauthorized access and record unusual calling patterns that could indicate theft of service.
- Succession Business Communications Manager has undergone upgrades, giving this data and telephony platform a full complement of applications, such as support for firewall inspection for both H. 323 and Session Initiation Protocol industry standards to deliver enhanced voice security. It possesses Virtual Private Network (VPN) functionality for securing both voice and data communications over public networks.
- Alteon Switched Firewall System allows application of different security policies across multiple domains, segmenting sensitive engineering data from employee communications data, for example, as well as isolating call servers from data centers.
- Contivity Secure IP Services Gateways are specifically designed to secure transmission of IP data and voice traffic via a VPN tunnel and its stateful firewall has been enhanced to support inspection of both H.323 and SIP standards. The combination of Quality of Service and Secure Routing Technology (SRT) ensure voice quality is not degraded by security mechanisms. Contivity can be used in conjunction with Succession Business Communications Manager, Meridian 1, Succession 1000 and Succession MX to provide a low-cost, yet highly-secure data and IP telephony connection across a Public IP network or the Internet.
Pat Cooper
Nortel Networks
(408) 495-9608
pat.cooper@nortel.com
Dana Hughens
Nortel Networks
(615) 432-4636
dhughens@nortel.com
Giorgia Casnedi
Nortel Networks
+44 1628 43 3117
casnedi@nortel.com
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