Web Hosting Geeks' Blog » access control http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog Web Hosting Industry News, Latest Trends, and Analyses. Thu, 24 May 2012 11:11:11 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.2 The Importance of PCI Scanninghttp://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/the-importance-of-pci-scanning/ http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/the-importance-of-pci-scanning/#comments Tue, 27 Oct 2009 15:57:13 +0000 Art http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/?p=591 Formed in 2004, the PCI SSC (Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council) was established to provide a universal set of security standards that is to be adhered to by merchants who process and transmit credit card data.  The council was founded by five of the top credit card companies: American Express, Discover, JCB, Mastercard and Visa.  In order to become a PCI compliant company, your business must comply with the standards set in place by PCI Security Standards Council.  There are currently 12 standards across six categories that must be met.  These standards are as follows:

1.) Create and Maintain a Secure Network

1. Protect cardholder data by implementing and maintaining a reliable firewall configuration.

2. Never use manufacturer-supplied default passwords as means for security mechanisms.

2.) Protect Cardholder Data

3. Protect cardholder data on servers and other storage mediums.

4. Encrypt cardholder data traveling over public and other open networks.

3.) Maintain a Vulnerability Management System

5. Install, use and regularly update malware protective software on all systems commonly affected by malicious programs.

6. Create, deploy and maintain secure systems and applications.

4.) Implement Strong Access Control Polices

7. Restrict access to cardholder data to authorized personnel on a need-to-know basis.

8. Assign each individual with access to cardholder data a unique set of login credentials.

9. Restrict physical access to cardholder data.

5. Test and Monitor Networks Regularly

10. Track and monitor user access to cardholder data and all network resources.

11. Perform regular tests of policies and security systems.

6. Maintain a Policy for Information Security Purposes

12. Implement and upkeep a policy that addresses information security issues.

How PCI Scanning Works

PCI scanning is performed by approved vendors that help online merchants become PCI compliant by providing services that enable them to meet the standards set forth by the Council.  The actual scan itself refers to the process of the vendor going through firewalls and other security elements a business has in place to determine if vulnerabilities exist.  In the end, PCI compliance benefits all parties involved, including the consumer, retailer and credit card company.  After the scanning has been performed, its ensures that your website is free of infection and less vulnerable to threats.  When shoppers see that your site is PCI compliant, they will be more comfortable that their personal and financial information is protected from web criminals.  Not only is this good from a regulatory standpoint, but from a public perspective as it can help lead to more conversions and sales for the retailer.  For the credit card company, it means less reports of fraud and identity theft, thus resulting in fewer headaches.

The market for PCI scanning is growing rapidly, with McAfee and Trust Guard being among the leading service providers.  There are also a number of web hosting firms that offer services with security features to help organizations become PCI compliant.  A wider variety enables small scale retailers to leverage the best of both worlds in regard to PCI scanning and traditional website security.

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]]> http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/the-importance-of-pci-scanning/feed/ 0 Ensim Aids in North America’s Largest Single OCS Deploymenthttp://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/ensim-aids-in-north-america%e2%80%99s-largest-single-ocs-deployment/ http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/ensim-aids-in-north-america%e2%80%99s-largest-single-ocs-deployment/#comments Tue, 29 Sep 2009 16:36:09 +0000 Art http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/?p=546 Ensim Corporation, a provider of web hosting automation, user provisioning and access control software solutions, announced that it recently provided provisioning and management services for Microsoft OCS (Office Communications Server), speeding up deployment to accommodate customers of more than 150,000 seats.  The move is being described as North America’s largest single OCS deployment in less than 90 days.  Though once delayed, the deployment is on course and Ensim is happy to get things back on track.

Scott Young, Ensim Vice President of Marketing and Product Management, revealed that the deployment of OSC 2007 is often a burden for regulated organizations due the complexities involved with user entitlement policies.  He stated that by deploying the Ensim Unify product, a particular customer was able to solve its provisioning and management problems in under 90 days all while enforcing the security and compliance policies demanded by its user base.  According to Young, the scalability and efficiency of Ensim Unfiy speaks volume when considering the tremendous size of the deployment it supported.

Ensim Unify Enterprise Edition is a fully integrated, role-based access management tool with the ability to be deployed merely for the OCS platform, or across an organization’s entire unified communications infrastructure.  This includes email, instant messaging, collaboration and conferencing.  Its built-in OCS Manager enables companies to reap the benefits of a complete unified communications system without the burden of manual provisioning and tedious management.  The feature integrates with existing ID management solutions to help organizations leverage the new functionality of OCS without straining their IT resources.

Some of the key features Ensim Unify’s OCS Manager offers include:

- The ability to seamlessly integrate complex provisioning polices

- The ability to support multiple provisioning workflows

- Complete Help Desk support on multiple levels

- Comprehensive logging of system activity and transactions

- The ability to automatically manage manual updates on a daily basis.

David J. Wippich, Ensim Corporation CEO and chairman, noted how the Ensim Unify product can be both a productive and cost effective solution.  He stressed that while the ROI which can result from deploying unified communications is substantial, many companies are lost at the deployment stage or find themselves dealing with complicated tasks following deployment.  He explained that the Ensim Unify solves the problem by enabling a fast deployment, automating daily management processes and unrivaled interoperability that makes the most of existing policies and investments that can be extended to unified communications applications such as Microsoft Office Communications Server.

About Ensim Corporation

Founded in 1998, Ensim Corporation is Microsoft Gold Certified Partner and the global leading provider of user provisioning and access management software solutions.  Its products are leveraged by enterprise companies and service providers around the world to enable and accelerate the deployment of various integrated solutions, simplifying the management of complex environments through automated functionality while ensuring security and increasing productivity amongst IT teams and users.  Ensim currently has more than two million users under management and that number seems to be growing considerably every quarter.

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]]> http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/ensim-aids-in-north-america%e2%80%99s-largest-single-ocs-deployment/feed/ 0 How Control Panels Automate the Web Hosting Operationhttp://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/how-control-panels-automate-the-web-hosting-operation/ http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/how-control-panels-automate-the-web-hosting-operation/#comments Wed, 16 Sep 2009 16:49:07 +0000 Art http://webhostinggeeks.com/blog/?p=526 These days, the average web hosting company has thousands of websites to maintain and even more customers to keep happy.  Manually performing all of the required tasks across multiple web servers is prohibitively costly and in many environments, impossible.  Being that web hosting is such a demanding operation, even seemingly trivial processes such as creating email accounts would be overwhelming difficult.  This is where control panels and automation come into play.  With a quality control panel application, hosting providers can get an efficient handle on server administration while their customers can manage virtually every aspect of their own websites without intervention from the host.

Control panel software is designed to automate various aspects of server administration, taking the pain out of intensive manual labor.  Some of the most notable include creating email accounts, SQL databases, access control and facilitating software installations among other administrative functions.  Most of these programs work by providing each domain and website owner with a unique access ID, which gives them access to the user interface of the control panel.  When the user logs in to their hosting account via the software, they are then able to perform a number of different server administration tasks based on the available features, resources and access permissions.  A good control panel will not only allow you to accomplish server administration with relative ease, but also monitor your resource usage, view server logs and manage your files right on the software.

Commercial vs. Custom Control Panels

When it comes to control panel applications, web hosting firms generally have two options.  They can choose to purchase an out of the box commercial solution, or build their own custom software in-house.  A large number of companies have elected to build their own software programs due to their proprietary hardware infrastructure, assured compatibility and to elude the often expensive licenses that come along with commercial products.  On the other hand, developing custom automation software in-house can prove to be both time consuming and expensive.   Most importantly, it could result in a much steeper learning curve for the hosting provider’s customers.  Therefore, most companies utilizing generic software and hardware components are better suited for out of the box commercial solutions as they typically offer the utmost in convenience for the end customer.  These type of control panels eliminate the cost and complexities of designing the application and also cut down on technical support as customers will be less likely to rely on assistance from the host.

Summary

Control panel software enables web hosting companies to drastically reduce overhead expenses through the simplistic power of automation.   This in turn, allows them to be more competitive in terms of pricing and even extend that power and control onto their customers who can perform a number of server administration tasks regardless of their technical knowledge.  From cPanel and Plesk to DirectAdmin and Helm, control panel software plays a key role in making sure web hosting is simple and affordable.

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