Protecting Corporate Intellectual Property
Sun Ray Clients help protect corporate data and intellectual property by moving them from insecure laptops and PCs to secure, corporate storage systems. Because the link to a Sun Ray Client can be a secure network, it's very difficult for a malicious PC user or network snooper to obtain unauthorized information from a Sun Ray Client even when it's in use. In use, a Sun Ray Client sends packets only to the proper output port, and a snooper plugged into another port receives no data.
If the network server and wiring closet are secure, the final link to the thin client is switched, and the thin client is plugged directly into the wall jack, it becomes virtually impossible for communications between the server and the Sun Ray Client to be intercepted. The protocol used for communication between the Sun Ray Client and the server can be protected further with ARCFOUR 128-bit encryption.
Finally, since no data resides on the client, and access to removable media can be centrally restricted, key customer data can't disappear on a USB memory stick, CD-ROM, or laptop hard drive.
Solaris Trusted Extensions Support
Sun Ray Software 4 10/08 has been updated to be compatible with Solaris Trusted Extensions.
External USB Smart Card Reader Support
Sun Ray Software 4 10/08 also supports the use of a second smart card reader (USB). This enables two person authentication.
Symmetric Key Interface
In addition to the normal UNIX login, a smart card usually includes the user's name, password, and PIN, and may also use a Symmetric Key Interface (SKI) or some other form of challenge/response authentication. This level of security is suitable for a wide range of IT applications, and it is available with third party software for Sun Ray Software.
In the case of symmetric keys, the key is embedded in the user's card while another identical key is located elsewhere, such as on the server. It's not hard to protect a private key on a smart card, and it's even easier to protect a private keys on the server.
Public Key Infrastructure
A Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) challenge/response authentication relies on both a private and public key. The smart card has a private key, usually in a certificate form, and the server stores the private key. The two keys, however, are not identical. Each has a corresponding public key that does not need to be protected.
The challenge/response dialog requires the server and the card to authenticate one another, for which they use their corresponding public keys, resulting in yet another secure layer of protection.
Biometric Advances
Some customers are now making use of biometric authentication -- fingerprints, retinal scans, facial-pattern recognition, and other data. Stored securely on a smart card, biometric data is extremely difficult to forge and cannot be extracted from the card. The card can also "sign" data so that it is verifiable and can be trusted.
Wider acceptance and implementation of biometric data is gaining momentum, and you can expect to see some very innovative advancements in biometric authentication in the near future. In the meantime, Sun Ray Software lets you adopt and deploy the latest biometric advancements to keep your security measures on the leading edge.
