Data Guard Systems is a privately held, business-to-business software solutions company, based in Cambridge, MA. The company is a leading developer and marketer of online business management software. Data Guard Systems has developed and implemented Point of Sale (POS), Customer Relations Management (CRM) applications, and secure document storage and marketing applications for businesses of all sizes.
One such application is the CellularManager® software platform, which offers an integrated and comprehensive suite of data management and enterprise synchronization tools to independent cellular retailers. This software platform has been deployed in thousands of store locations throughout the entire United States and Canada.
Data Guard Systems' massive expansion took advantage of the new global economy. With offices not only in the United States but also in India and Korea, this company's human and data resources are widespread throughout the world.
THE CHALLENGE
While Data Guard maintains offices in the United States, major software development, account management, and customer support services often emanate from offices in Bangalore and Mumbai, India, as well as Seoul, Korea.
With such a widespread global workforce, Data Guard looks to protect its corporate developmental and data assets from theft as well as protect the confidential information of U.S. and Canadian-based clients who are supported by a global workforce. In the evolving global and digital marketplace, the protection of confidential data assets is more important than ever.
1. Protect Developmental Data Assets:
While the majority of software development is based in Indian offices, the overseeing technology team and CTO are based in the United States. Thus, securing corporate assets is a definite, especially with the two teams a hemisphere away. Workstations and laptops needed to be secured in the event of leakage and/or theft while e-mailed data back and forth between development teams needed to be protected. Additionally, Data Guard Systems employs a virtualized infrastructure, so these server assets on their Storage Array Networks (SANs) required protection as well.
2. Secure Customer Confidential Information:
Data Guard hires not only office-based employees but also contracted, independent field account managers. All are supplied with corporate devices such as laptops and PDAs for field sales and support. In their daily conversations with clients, confidential customer information may be released to Data Guard’s employees via e-mail or other digital means. Protecting Data Guard’s clientele from potential internal data breaches is of the utmost concern.
3. Safeguard Corporate Laptops and Devices:
Many Data Guard employees are given corporate laptops and smart phones or PDAs to facilitate working from the road or at home. However, the convenience that these portable devices provide is often overshadowed by a looming fear of theft or loss. A security solution was needed to ensure that in the event of theft or loss the sensitive corporate and customer data stored on laptops was protected completely.
4. Ensure Overall Employee Productivity:
As a managed service provider, Data Guard conducts much of its day-to-day business over the Internet and secured intranets. Thus, cryptography software that did not impede the employees or bog down the computer’s resources was required. Furthermore, since Data Guard distributed corporate laptops to field agents, there was also a desire to prevent employees from installing non-sanctioned software and inadvertently executing trojans and viruses which could cripple the employee’s laptop…as well as jeopardize the security of any confidential data.
5. Deploy Globally without Wasting Time and Update Policies Remotely as the Business Scales:
With a global workforce, collecting all devices into one room for an IT staff to spend a month installing encryption algorithms was an impossibility. The potential effect on employee productivity would be tremendously negative, and the overall costs involved to securely transport devices to the home office for encrypting were exorbitant. The solution needed to be painlessly deployed across the global workplace with little disruption to standard day-to-day business processes.