Macquarie Telecom Scores International Security Standard – BS 7799

SecureVote selects Macquarie Telecom for Security and Reliability
 

Sydney, AUSTRALIA – 10th March 2005 – Macquarie Telecom has been re-certified with BS 7799* – the standard is widely recognised as a leading international standard for Information Security.

“Certification is increasingly relevant to government departments and businesses as they upgrade IT systems and processes to meet regulatory and corporate governance requirements,” said Glen Noble, General Manager Data and Hosting, Macquarie Telecom.

Third party certifications such as BS 7799 provide guidelines to ensure the appropriate technology and business processes are in place to safeguard an organisation's data assets.

“Certification is a gruelling process and not financially viable for many organisations. But given the legal ramifications of non-compliance, it is increasingly important for risk mitigation,” Glen Noble said.

“Compliance is motivating a lot of Macquarie Telecom's government and business customers to use our data centre. It means they have instant access to technology, security, skills and business processes that have been certified to be of world class standard.”

Macquarie Telecom was the first Australian commercial data centre to achieve BS 7799 and remains one of the most highly certified commercial data centres in the Asia Pacific region.

Other certifications include a range of best-of-breed vendor accreditations and DSD Gateway Certification** – a pre-requisite to providing secure gateway services to Commonwealth departments and agencies.

Macquarie Telecom is the only Australian carrier to have attained “Highly Protected Status” within DSD Gateway Certification – one of the most stringent categories within the certification.

SecureVote Selects Macquarie Telecom for Security and Reliability

For SecureVote, a company providing election services, adhering to privacy, security and legislation guidelines is at the heart of its business.

According to Ian Parker, Chief Technology Officer and Privacy Officer, SecureVote, it was vital the company found a provider that would not compromise its position on these fronts.

“Accreditations were a critical factor in the decision making process as they demonstrate accountability and transparency of systems and processes,” said Ian Parker.

“At the end of the day, the accreditations let us rest assured that the security and integrity of our voting systems will be maintained at all times,” he added.

Macquarie Telecom delivers SecureVote Managed Security Services including Secure Dedicated Managed Hosting, patch management, firewall management, intrusion detection, managed backup services and Intellihands ad hoc services.

"The BS 7799 Standard provides a comprehensive system for protecting information for Business Continuity Management. It ensures companies can function in events ranging from a major catastrophe like 9/11 to bugging and bin-sifting. It encompasses people, physical environments, communications systems, processes and IT systems,” said Duncan Lilley, Managing Director of BSI Management Systems in Asia.

BSI Management Systems registered Macquarie Telecom for BS 7799.

"Information is the lifeblood of all organisations. With the threats to organisational reputation and share price, protecting information has never been more important. BSI therefore congratulates Macquarie Telecom on their continuing achievement with BS 7799,” he said.

* About BS 7799

Developed by BSI, BS 7799 is the internationally recognised standard for information security management.

Macquarie Telecom was the first company in Australia to achieve the BS 7799 certification. This certification is widely regarded as an industry benchmark in information security and reassures Macquarie Telecom's customers about the security of its data services.

The standard can be divided into two broad categories: end to end process integrity and data security management. BS 7799 is based on assuring integrity, availability and confidentiality of information assets. Assurance is attained through controls that management creates and maintains within the organisation. These are categorised as follows:

• A documented information security policy • Allocation of information security responsibilities within the organisation • Information security education and training • Security incident reporting and response • Business continuity planning • Control of proprietary software copying • Virus detection and prevention controls • Critical record management processes • Protection of personal data (privacy) • Periodic compliance reviews

** About Defence Signals Directorate (DSD)

Gateway Certification The Defence Signals Directorate (DSD) provided Macquarie Telecom Intellicentre with certification for its Internet Gateway service for Australian Commonwealth customers. This certification offers assurance that the gateway provides protection from external threats appropriate for systems and data up to and including the ‘Highly Protected' level of classification. This certification is a prerequisite to providing secure gateway services to Commonwealth Departments and Agencies using FedLink, a secure VPN service. Macquarie Telecom was the first telecommunications carrier in Australia to achieve DSD Gateway certification.

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For more information:
Mandy Galmes
N2N Communications
02 9213 2302
agalmes@n2n.com.au

About Macquarie Telecom
Macquarie Telecom is a leading supplier of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) solutions – including voice, data, mobile and hosting – specialising in the business and government markets. The world class Intellicentre facility offers state-of-the-art hosting and security solutions. The Intellicentre is certified to BS 7799 and DSD Gateway security standards.

Macquarie Telecom provides services to more than 2,500 of the top companies in Australia and Asia, supporting more than one million business users at work every day. Founded in July 1992, it is one of Australasia's first deregulated telecommunications companies. It expanded its operation into Asia in 2000, and holds carrier licences in Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong.