Maltese backdrop for international debate on IPTV, credit card security
Internet TV and credit card security were two of the most hotly debated issued at the NetEvents conference held in Malta recently. The event brought together technology journalists and companies to discuss the latest trends. Matt Chapman from...
Internet TV and credit card security were two of the most hotly debated issued at the NetEvents conference held in Malta recently. The event brought together technology journalists and companies to discuss the latest trends.
Matt Chapman from vnunet.com reports that industry experts warned IPTV that services are not up to scratch because they are being put together using technology made for other purposes.
"With the introduction of the dedicated set-top box, most people try and build triple-play or quad-play networks out of regular networking tools, such as switches and routers, which were not designed for the IPTV challenge," said Steve Broadhead, director of Broadband-Testing.
"We are taking the basic building blocks and are putting them together to do whatever makes it work. There are lots of different ways you can go wrong in a network. Maybe what people want is a blueprint that says this is exactly how you design an IPTV network. At the moment, it is not easy."
Stephen Garrison, vice president of marketing at Force 10, reportedly agreed that a lack of standards is holding back IPTV when it comes to mobile devices.
"Europe did it right by standardising on GSM. I wish the rest of the world would do the same. I wish there was a unified franchise that governed all cell phones and TVs in this format. The new service reported that there was a general agreement that future networks would provide the right infrastructure to run IPTV."
"Video is naturally driving upgrades," said Alan Lippman, chief video architect at Redback Networks. "It is not just IPTV as a service. It is all these video applications that people are requesting causing the entire network to be upgraded. As you upgrade, IPTV becomes a usable service that you can offer. In 10 years' time people are going to look back and thank us that we invested in IPTV," he said, adding that the real change would occur when telcos became broadcasters.
The other issues tackled in the conference was credit card security, prompted by the payment card industry's data security standards PCI DSS, developed by the PCI Security Standards Council
ITPRO's Nicole Kobie reports how the discussion focused on who should be responsible for credit card security, whether merchants or card issuers. In any case, the panel in the discussion agreed on the need more secure payment systems.
Considering the TJX/TK Maxx security breach, Bob Walder, the chief scientist at NSS Labs, noted that unprotected customer details could be expensive to companies. Apart from money lost directly through a data breach, cards would need to be reissued. Customers need to be informed of the longer term costs of fixing breaches and repairing customer confidence and brand damage. "Customers have a long memory which can cost even more in the long run," he said.
"If you've been compromised, you've put your customers at risk," added Carlos Solari, the vice-president of security for Alcatel-Lucent. "It's the end of your business."
Mr Walder said merchants couldn't be expected to be security experts. He asked the panel to consider the mindset of Larry the pizza shop owner: "He's got to look encryption up in the dictionary."
The technology news website reported the solution lies in more pressure being put on credit card companies and networks to keep data secure. One solution could be certification of security products. "In the end, it doesn't matter how prescriptive you get, products need to be certified," said Neal Hartsell, vice president of marketing at Tipping Point. That way, smaller vendors and larger firms alike will know which products are proven to meet PCI standards, he said.
Alcatel-Lucent's Solari suggested credit cards themselves should be made more secure. "The credit card itself continues to be a weak point," he said.
But Mr Bacon was quoted as saying you can't certify people. "People will break security every time," he said. No matter how good the technology, he added. He gave a car, as an example. No matter how much safety technology manufacturers put into their cars, people will always make them dangerous - there's nothing you can do about "the nut behind the wheel," he said.
Matt Chapman from vnunet.com reports that industry experts warned IPTV that services are not up to scratch because they are being put together using technology made for other purposes.
"With the introduction of the dedicated set-top box, most people try and build triple-play or quad-play networks out of regular networking tools, such as switches and routers, which were not designed for the IPTV challenge," said Steve Broadhead, director of Broadband-Testing.
"We are taking the basic building blocks and are putting them together to do whatever makes it work. There are lots of different ways you can go wrong in a network. Maybe what people want is a blueprint that says this is exactly how you design an IPTV network. At the moment, it is not easy."
Stephen Garrison, vice president of marketing at Force 10, reportedly agreed that a lack of standards is holding back IPTV when it comes to mobile devices.
"Europe did it right by standardising on GSM. I wish the rest of the world would do the same. I wish there was a unified franchise that governed all cell phones and TVs in this format. The new service reported that there was a general agreement that future networks would provide the right infrastructure to run IPTV."
"Video is naturally driving upgrades," said Alan Lippman, chief video architect at Redback Networks. "It is not just IPTV as a service. It is all these video applications that people are requesting causing the entire network to be upgraded. As you upgrade, IPTV becomes a usable service that you can offer. In 10 years' time people are going to look back and thank us that we invested in IPTV," he said, adding that the real change would occur when telcos became broadcasters.
The other issues tackled in the conference was credit card security, prompted by the payment card industry's data security standards PCI DSS, developed by the PCI Security Standards Council
ITPRO's Nicole Kobie reports how the discussion focused on who should be responsible for credit card security, whether merchants or card issuers. In any case, the panel in the discussion agreed on the need more secure payment systems.
Considering the TJX/TK Maxx security breach, Bob Walder, the chief scientist at NSS Labs, noted that unprotected customer details could be expensive to companies. Apart from money lost directly through a data breach, cards would need to be reissued. Customers need to be informed of the longer term costs of fixing breaches and repairing customer confidence and brand damage. "Customers have a long memory which can cost even more in the long run," he said.
"If you've been compromised, you've put your customers at risk," added Carlos Solari, the vice-president of security for Alcatel-Lucent. "It's the end of your business."
Mr Walder said merchants couldn't be expected to be security experts. He asked the panel to consider the mindset of Larry the pizza shop owner: "He's got to look encryption up in the dictionary."
The technology news website reported the solution lies in more pressure being put on credit card companies and networks to keep data secure. One solution could be certification of security products. "In the end, it doesn't matter how prescriptive you get, products need to be certified," said Neal Hartsell, vice president of marketing at Tipping Point. That way, smaller vendors and larger firms alike will know which products are proven to meet PCI standards, he said.
Alcatel-Lucent's Solari suggested credit cards themselves should be made more secure. "The credit card itself continues to be a weak point," he said.
But Mr Bacon was quoted as saying you can't certify people. "People will break security every time," he said. No matter how good the technology, he added. He gave a car, as an example. No matter how much safety technology manufacturers put into their cars, people will always make them dangerous - there's nothing you can do about "the nut behind the wheel," he said.