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In GoAnywhere’s latest product release of its Managed File Transfer solution, MFT agent capabilities were introduced. The following resource aims to help readers understand what MFT agents are, the difference between a traditional MFT deployment and an MFT agent deployment and some example use cases. For further questions, open the Live Chat box at the bottom right of this page or send us an email at linoma.sales@helpsystems.com.

What are MFT Agents?

MFT agents provide real-time, remote file transfer capabilities that are controlled from a central MFT server. Managed File Transfer Agents are ideal for organizations with remote sites like branch offices, cloud environments or other remote locations, where remote management of data movement from a single flagship location is required.

With GoAnywhere MFT agents, IT admins can:

• Enjoy centralized control of remote file transfers and workflows
• Create Agent Templates with registration rules to easily deploy Agents on a large scale
• Monitor remote locations for new, modified and deleted files on the system

MFT Agents vs. Traditional MFT

There are a few key differences between traditional MFT deployments and an MFT Agent deployment. By deploying agents, network professionals can manage all instances of the deployment from one centralized location, versus having to manage multiple locations individually. This drastically reduces the amount of configuration time, and can present major cost benefits considering the reduction in administration time, management of software updates and other tasks.

MFT agent capability allows IT professionals to easily deploy MFT agents on almost any server or workstation where file transfers need to be performed (Windows, VMware, Linux, Amazon EC2, Microsoft Azure, IBM I (iSeries), AIX, UNIX, and Mac OS systems). With this multi-platform capability, organizations with complex environments can greatly reduce the manual, repeatable work associated with the complexity.

MFT Agent Applications & Use Cases

In an interview with Linoma Software President and Chief Architect, Bob Luebbe, the wide application of MFT agents is explained. “The use cases for MFT agents are really endless. Whether it’s a franchise needing to synchronize files with its store locations, or a healthcare system needing to move PHI data between its data center and satellite clinics, the deployment of MFT agents will greatly simplify those processes,” he says.

Below are just a few use cases of Managed File Transfer agents:

• Restaurant Franchises: Whether a restaurant chain has thousands of locations worldwide, or a handful of regional locations, MFT agents allow for the distribution of new proprietary recipes, pricing updates and other sensitive data to and from the remote locations - easily and securely.
• Retail Stores: Retail organizations with a network of stores can now manage new season inventory updates, product launch information, changes to employee policies and more, all through one centralized solution.
• Healthcare Providers: Healthcare clinics with multiple satellite locations can ensure PHI data is securely transferred between locations, pharmacies and other partners using MFT agents.
• Insurance Agencies: Enrollment applications, new products and services, and pricing structure updates can all be transferred quickly and securely.

In any use case, MFT agents can run on systems inside an organization’s network to move files throughout the data center, or can be deployed to remote sites like branch offices, cloud environments like Amazon AWS, Azure, and other remote locations. GoAnywhere MFT Agents even allow users to create and schedule multi-step workflows that can copy files, archive files, translate data, send alerts, add data to a database, execute native commands, or perform other file system tasks.

The image below shows an example implementation model, where one agent is deployed to an internal network, two are deployed to remote locations and one is deployed to a cloud environment.

Imagine the possibilities if organizations could greatly reduce the time spent on manual file transfer processes, and reallocate those resources towards more strategic initiatives.

Could MFT agents be a fit for your organization? Schedule a demo, contact a product specialist at linoma.sales@helpsystems.com, or watch the on-demand MFT Agents webinar to learn more.

Do you ever wish you knew how other businesses are dealing with today’s security threats? The 2017 Cybersecurity Trends Report, recently released by Crowd Research Partners, provides insight into the cybersecurity concerns and priorities of organizations across a wide range of industries.

The report is a comprehensive study revealing current cybersecurity trends in threat management, data protection, cloud security, application security, mobile security, security training and certification, managed security, and more. The 2017 report is based on a survey of more than 1,900 cybersecurity professionals across businesses of all sizes, from those with fewer than 10 employees (7 percent of respondents) to those with over 10,000 (26 percent of respondents). Download the full report here or read on for a few top takeaways.

#1 - Everyone is Worried about Cybersecurity

Security threats are a very real and urgent concern for most companies. Over half (54 percent) of cybersecurity professionals anticipate successful cyberattacks on their organization in the next 12 months. And they aren’t taking that threat lightly. 52 percent are boosting their security budget by an average of 21 percent.

Most professionals are not convinced that they are ready for an attack. 62 percent of respondents were moderately confident to not at all confident in their organization’s overall security posture.

#2 - Lack of Budget is Greatest Barrier to Security

While the majority of organizations are increasing their security budget, finances remain one of the top obstacles to stronger security, with 45 percent of respondents citing lack of budget as a barrier that inhibits the organization from defending against cyber threats.

For this reason, it’s essential that companies spend their money on solutions that give them a solid return on investment. Using free tools and apps where an enterprise-class product is needed can cause a company to fall victim to a cyberattack, while purchasing the most expensive tools on the market can leave you with empty pockets and a long list of features you don’t need.

Need to secure and streamline your file transfers? Maximize your investment with the MFT ROI Calculator.

#3 - Internal Threats & Untrained Employees are Biggest Threats

33 percent of cybersecurity professionals are worried about threats coming from within the company. While a malicious employee may hack into sensitive data intentionally, in most cases the more pressing concern is careless or uninformed staff members. A lack of skilled employees tops the list of barriers to both stronger security (45 percent) and to threat management (33 percent).

Whether your insider threats are malicious or careless, solutions with role-based security and auditing are recommended to help mitigate risk of a breach. Role-based security enables organizations to restrict permissions of individual users to only the information and functionality required to do their job, while auditing capabilities provide detailed audit logs of actions taken by each user.

Another top concern is the security of cloud applications, services, and infrastructure. Respondents cited fears including the need to protect against data loss, threats to data privacy, and breaches of confidentiality. To protect sensitive data transferred using a cloud-based solution, experts recommend  verifying that the solution provides end-to-end encryption for protecting files at rest and in transit.

#4 - Encryption is Greatest File Transfer Challenge

The number one concern when it comes to transferring files is security, with 59 percent of survey respondents citing encryption of files as a challenge they face. This is a serious shortcoming given that 67 percent of respondents ranked data encryption as the most effective means for protecting against cybersecurity attacks. It’s critical that any organization transferring files implements a secure managed file transfer solution that streamlines the process of providing various types of encryption like SSL, SSH, AES, and OpenPGP.

Unfortunately, the majority of organizations surveyed are still using inadequate solutions. For example, email is still the most common file transfer method for smaller files, even though unsecured email is both vulnerable to cyberattack and difficult to track for auditing.

Over half of professionals surveyed said that they lack the tools to prove compliance related to transfer of sensitive files. The right enterprise file transfer software simplifies compliance by providing the security features required by major industry regulations, the reports an auditor needs to see, and even tools to help you check if your data transfers are meeting standards.

Learn more about what the 2017 Cybersecurity Trends Report means for your file transfers, or read the full report now.

Download the Cybersecurity Trends Report

The 2017 Cybersecurity Trends Report was recently released by Crowd Research Partners. The report covers many aspects of cybersecurity, such as general security trends, cloud and mobile security, and managed security services. It also looks at how organizations are securing their file transfers, including some common file security pitfalls.

Here’s what the CyberSecurity Trends Report has to say about file transfers.

Security is the Top File Transfer Concern

When it comes to the challenges businesses face when transferring files, security is at the top of the list, with 59 percent of respondents citing it as a concern. Furthermore, over half of the IT security professionals surveyed said that if their file sharing practices were audited for regulatory compliance, they do not have the tools they need to streamline the process.

Managed file transfer (MFT) is the clear answer for both security and compliance challenges. A good MFT solution will provide a variety of encryption methods and secure protocols to combat modern data security threats. MFT software also includes detailed audit logging capabilities to ensure you can prove your file transfers are compliant in case of an audit.

Securing Customer Data is Critical

Protecting sensitive data is a significant concern for most organizations. Above all, companies are worried about the security of customer data—72 percent of survey respondents cited it as a type of sensitive data they are most concerned about protecting.

There’s good reason to be careful about customer data. According to Verizon’s latest PCI DSS Compliance Report, 69 percent of consumers would be less inclined to do business with an organization that had suffered a data breach. Customer data security is also essential for maintaining compliance with PCI DSS and other industry standards.

Other types of data that respondents are concerned about protecting include employee data (66 percent), email (54 percent), corporate financial data (46 percent), and health information (33 percent)—important if you need to comply with HIPAA.

A managed file transfer solution can provide end-to-end encryption to protect files at rest and in transit. 67 percent of survey respondents ranked encryption as the most effective means for protecting data.

Too Many Organizations are Using Inadequate File Transfer Methods

Email is still the most common file transfer method for smaller files, used by 63 percent of respondents. This is a serious risk as unsecured email is both vulnerable to cyberattack and difficult to track for auditing purposes. Another 18 percent rely on writing custom scripts, a method that is both time-consuming and prone to error.

Fortunately, 49 percent of respondents have implemented managed file transfer software. Managed file transfer streamlines the secure exchange of data and provides organizations with a single point of control for all file transfers. Implementing an MFT solution that provides enterprise-level security features, role-based security, and full audit trails, is the best way to make sure your data transfers stay ahead of constantly evolving security threats.

To learn more, download the full Cybersecurity Trends Report.

Securing information is rising in importance for organizations worldwide. Using outdated technology is extremely risky, yet many organizations continue to do so because of legacy systems that don’t allow them to upgrade, lack of resources and time to upgrade, or they are simply unaware. The commonly used SHA-1 algorithm is a perfect example of an obsolete encryption standard that should have been completely phased out long ago. So why are people talking about it today?

With over a decade of warnings about the security vulnerabilities of SHA-1, and deprecation by The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in 2011, many organizations have since phased out use of this older hash algorithm. For those remaining organizations who haven’t migrated away from SHA-1, Google’s recent public announcement of the first SHA-1 collision should motivate them to abandon this algorithm completely.

Hash algorithms are widely used for a variety of functions including authentication and digital signatures. With file transfers, the algorithm was typically utilized to verify the integrity of sent messages. Using SHA-1, files are compressed into a 160-bit message digest or hash file which is calculated both before and after transmission. On receipt, the two hash values (or signatures) for that transmission are checked to ensure the data has remained intact, as long as both values still match. If the hash values don’t match, the file was likely compromised at some point along the way.

Having two different messages that produce the same hash value should be almost impossible. However, advancements in technology and computational power since the introduction of SHA-1 have exposed its vulnerabilities. With last week’s announcement, Google has proven that systems using SHA-1 can be fooled into thinking a signature is valid when it’s not by producing the same cryptographic hash with two different files. By publicizing their work, this legacy algorithm has been rendered obsolete and insecure.

How does the SHA-1 collision affect file transfers?

If you are still using SHA-1 to verify the integrity of file transfers, you should know that it is no longer considered a safe or secure method. Bottom line, if you still use SHA-1, it should be transitioned to a more secure standard as soon as possible.

If you’re looking to replace SHA-1, an obvious alternative would be SHA-2. The SHA-2 algorithm is a family of hash functions with values of 224, 256, 384 or 512 bits, thus providing stronger security with longer message digests. The more complex algorithms generate more potential hash combinations than were possible with SHA-1 which make the SHA-2 algorithm extremely difficult to break using today’s technology.

GoAnywhere Managed File Transfer and SHA-2

GoAnywhere MFT fully supports the SHA-2 algorithm for secure file transfers over SFTP and FTPS. In addition, GoAnywhere is Drummond Certified for AS2 file transfers and successfully met all requirements for the optional AS2 secure hashing algorithm 2 (SHA-2) tests.

With new corporate data breaches in the news seemingly every day, it’s no surprise that security is a top concern for IT professionals. However, file transfers are an area where many companies are still vulnerable. Most file transfers still use FTP, a protocol that comes with inherent risks. It’s especially worrisome that, as TechRepublic points out, FTP is actually becoming more popular again. Other common file transfer solutions, like file sharing apps, come with their own security concerns.

This is the second in a series of articles about the ROI of managed file transfer (MFT), the first of which covered time savings. There’s no doubt that data breaches are costly. The 2016 Ponemon Cost of Data Breach Study puts the current cost at $4 million—$158 per record breached. So it’s a no-brainer that a solution to secure your file transfers would bring you a great return on investment.

And yet, when you try to get internal approval for products to help with security, proving the ROI can be difficult. A good security tool is by nature preventative. If you haven’t suffered a breach (or you have and don’t know about it yet), you probably don’t have a way to precisely calculate cost-savings.

Still, your data certainly has value, and you know you have to keep it secure. So how do you know you are protecting your file transfers with the solution that gives you the most bang for your buck? By making sure the software you choose addresses all of the top file transfer security concerns within one solution—no additional purchases or custom scripting required.

A Variety of Secure Protocols

FTP has been proven vulnerable to hacking. For example, 7,000 FTP sites, including an FTP server run by The New York Times, had their credentials circulated in underground forums in 2014. In some cases, hackers used the credentials to upload malicious files.

It’s essential for modern enterprises to turn to more modern and secure file transfer methods, such as:

• AS2: AS2 generates an "envelope" for the data, allowing it to be sent using digital certifications and encryption.
• SFTP and FTPS: These secure FTP protocols bring down the risk during data exchange by using a secure channel between computer systems
• HTTPS: The secure version of HTTP, HTTPS encrypts communications between browser and website.

Which of these methods your company implements may depend on several factors, like your industry compliance requirements or what your trading partners use. Your requirements may also change over time. That’s why the best investment is a versatile managed file transfer solution that can handle any of these protocols and more.   

Protection against People

When you imagine the security threat to your company, you might conjure up images of hackers working tirelessly to access your systems and use your data for nefarious purposes. The truth is, one of your biggest threats is probably in the office down the hall.

A 2015 study found that internal actors were responsible for 43% of data loss. Half of this is intentional—disgruntled or opportunistic employees, contractors, or suppliers performing deliberate acts of data theft. But half of it is accidental. People like to cut corners, and probably most employees in your company aren’t as concerned about security as you are.

Any file transfer solution with a good ROI has to address the threat coming from within the business.  You want to have role-based security options that limit each user to the servers and the functions of managed file transfer that they absolutely need to use. Detailed audit logs mean you always know who is doing what with the solution.

Ensure Compliance

In many industries, inadequate security practices don’t just put your own corporate data at risk, they can endanger highly sensitive information like credit card numbers and health records. For this reason, a number of regulations exist to protect personal data. A few of the most common are PCI DSS, Sarbanes-Oxley, and HIPAA, but your industry may have others.

A 2011 study found that while the cost of compliance averaged more than $3.5 million, the estimated cost of failing to comply was $9.4 million, showing that a solution that can help you comply with regulations has a clear ROI. In the case of file transfers, your MFT platform should have a number of encryption methods available to protect sensitive data including SSL, SSH, AES, and Open PGP encryption. Audit trails should also be in place to track file transfer activity so you can easily determine what files are being sent, what time they are sent, and who the sender and receiver are.

Modernization and Scalability

Once you go to the effort of choosing a file transfer solution that will protect your company, convince management of its necessity, and implement the software, the last thing you want to have to do is  change it two years down the road because your company is bigger, has more compliance requirements, or new trading partners.

A managed file transfer platform from an established, reliable software provider will make sure you stay updated with the features necessary to combat current security threats. Furthermore, if your volume of file transfers increases, you won’t need to invest in a new tool to handle the workload.

Bonus: Increased Productivity

If your managed file transfer solution can prevent a data breach, that alone makes it worth the investment. But what if it could increase productivity and reduce errors at the same time? The automation capabilities of managed file transfer software allow you to make a high-volume of file transfers without the need for tedious manual work. Streamlining this process—and eliminating the risk of human error—add to your organization’s bottom line.

Read more about safeguarding company data and limiting risk, or get started with a free trial of managed file transfer.

Every business engages in some kind of information exchange, whether it’s a small retailer attaching an invoice to an email or a hospital sending hundreds of patient records between departments. Some methods of exchanging files, like a basic FTP server or a file sharing app, seem like an inexpensive way to deal with your transfers. In the long run, however, the shortfalls of these tools will likely cost your company significantly more than the investment in a sophisticated managed file transfer (MFT) solution.

A study by the Aberdeen Group found that every file sent “for free” actually has an 80% chance of costing your organization money. In a new series of articles, we’ll break down the reasons why MFT gives your company a better ROI than any other file transfer solution. The first reason we’ll discuss is the time you’ll save with managed file transfer.

We’ve all heard that time is money, and if you’ve ever been the unlucky person manually transferring files by FTP, it’s no stretch of the imagination to think that automated file transfer software would save a bit of time on each exchange. But you probably haven’t even thought of all the ways a rudimentary file transfer tool can waste costly hours. Here are a few:

1. Dealing with Exceptions

As with any process, your file transfers aren’t always going to go smoothly. While even a basic tool will work most of the time, you’ll inevitably run into the occasional problem which will require you to divert members of your staff away from more important projects to help get the files moving. Aberdeen’s analysis found that those who don’t use MFT have more than twice as many of these errors and exceptions as MFT users. With a single-function file transfer tool, the operator is solely responsible for checking if the transfer succeeded and trying it again if it failed. A good managed file transfer solution has ways of dealing with issues that arise—for example, the software could automatically reconnect and resume the file transfer after a problem occurs with the network.

Moreover, the MFT solution will provide visibility into the status of automated file transfers and let you know if something goes wrong. This allows you to attack the problem immediately and get back to your more strategic initiatives as soon as possible. A basic tool or script may cause you to waste hours just trying to determine what happened to your files.

2. Upgrades and Modifications

A common solution for moving files is with custom scripts. This seems like an easy option at first. Your company has talented programmers and it’s not too hard to create a homegrown FTP script that gets the job done. The first few times you need a modification or a new feature, that’s not difficult either. But pretty soon your company is transferring thousands of files every day, your homegrown solution is severely lacking in the error-handling, security, and logging capabilities it needs, and updating your mess of sprawling scripts will cost you dearly in expensive programmer hours. Or maybe the original creator of the scripts has left the company and those hours will be spent just trying to figure out how it all works.

Managed file transfer has the features you require as your business needs grow more complex. You can trust that it will continue to be updated when necessary and upgrades won’t require the same technical expertise as creating a homegrown tool does. 

3. Compliance Requirements and Auditing

Storing and tracking detailed audit information is crucial for staying compliant with PCI DSS, HIPAA, state privacy laws, and other regulations. A managed file transfer solution will store detailed audit records for all file transfer and administrator activity and provide that data in an easily accessible format to authorized users. If you are legally obligated to collect this information, there’s no better time-saver than implementing file transfer software that stores the data automatically.

Furthermore, compliance requirements can always change or new regulations can be put in place. While you may already have a process for complying with current regulations, MFT provides the flexibility to respond to new security requirements without creating too much additional time-consuming work.

4. Avoiding Downtime.

Just one minute of unplanned system downtime costs a company an average of $5,600. Talk about expensive hours! Make sure your file transfers keep running even if a server goes down by implementing MFT software that integrates clustering. This means you have a group of linked servers running concurrently, with each installation of your MFT tool sharing the same set of configurations and trading partner accounts. The servers in the cluster are in constant communication with each other, so if one fails, the remaining systems in the cluster will continue to service the trading partners. With the fast pace of modern business, you can’t afford to let your transactions wait while you take the time to get your systems functioning again.

Every minute that your business isn’t paying employees to fight fires, write custom scripts, or compile audit reports is a minute that can be put towards the work that helps the bottom line.

Interested in learning more about the ROI of Managed File Transfer? Read the next installment in our series: No Such Thing as a Free File Transfer, Part 2: Cost-effective Security.

Learn more about the risks of inadequate FTP implementations or get started with a free trial of managed file transfer today. 

Organizations today are challenged with maximizing their resources in a fiercely competitive environment. Benjamin Franklin famously said, “Lost time is never found again.” This is a problem that is familiar to IT departments of all sizes.

Take, for example, an IT staff member who spends countless hours waiting on inbound and outbound transfers. Or there’s the professional who still needs to manually process data — spending time translating it from one file format to another. What’s more, often many valuable hours are spent troubleshooting when a file transfer fails (and the failure isn’t discovered until after a trading partner calls to complain). Yet there is a way your existing staff can shift their focus to higher priority tasks. But how?

The Benefits of File Transfer Automation

File transfer automation is a powerful tool, as it allows IT departments to pivot away from the cumbersome tasks that surround file transfer and instead focus on more strategic and significant projects. Automation reduces human error and increases accuracy; plus, you still get communication about everything that is taking place.

For example, email notifications can be programmed at any point in the automation process to alert key personnel regarding transfer activities. This helps organizations identify failures and successes quickly and adjust accordingly. Other benefits and capabilities include the following:

Scheduling. Built-in scheduling allows for executing workflows at future dates and times. For example, schedule workflows as “one time” or set them up to run at various times — every minute, every hour or every day — or another interval of your preference. The result is fewer interactions and higher efficiency for staff.

File monitoring. Monitor your company’s files with greater accuracy. For example, through automation you can monitor or scan all the files created, modified or deleted within specific folders on your network, SFTP or FTPS servers. Greater visibility is gained with less time invested in manual processes.

Triggers. Set triggers for monitored events, such as file uploads or downloads by a specific partner. After a file is uploaded, perhaps you want it archived to a folder or processed by running a shell script. Setting a trigger allows you to set in motion a sequence of actions prompted by an event. Triggers eliminate the time consuming process of manually completing routine follow-up tasks.

Greater Efficiency for the Future

Organizations need competitive advantages that promote operational efficiency. In some cases, companies have eliminated the need for difficult-to-staff third shift positions or the reduction has happened organically through attrition and they need to maximize their existing resources. Other times, they are growing fast and need innovative tools that streamline time-consuming tasks.

Automation provides these solutions, offloading manually repetitive tasks so your existing team can refocus their talents on more strategic projects.  You can learn more by visiting our file transfer automation page.

Linoma Software announces two significant enhancements in Version 5.2 of the award winning GoAnywhere Managed File Transfer software.  A new file transfer acceleration protocol called GoFast improves delivery speed and reliability when compared to traditional FTP, and Domains allows organizations to segregate users and workflows to provide an additional layer of data security.

The new GoFast protocol uses multiple UDP channels to accelerate the movement of files between servers. This acceleration is especially useful for moving large files, including videos and backup sets, across the internet or wide area networks (WANs). Options are provided in GoFast to protect confidential transfers with strong AES-256 encryption, as well as compress transmissions to minimize bandwidth requirements. Since GoFast is a feature within the GoAnywhere Managed File Transfer solution, it takes full advantage of the available automation, auditing and reporting capabilities in the product.

Domains can be used to segregate GoAnywhere MFT into multiple security zones where authorized users can only work with trading partners, workflows and logs belonging to their assigned domains.  This functionality benefits organizations that need to share a single installation of GoAnywhere with multiple divisions or departments, while maintaining separation of administrative access. Each domain can be locked into certain network folders to prevent unauthorized access by other administrators.

Continuing Advancements with GoAnywhere Automation & Security

Current GoAnywhere MFT customers that upgrade to the current release also gain new functionality for workflow automation and user authentication. Highlights for some of the new features include:

• Support for Amazon S3 Buckets and WebDAV resources that can be used as file storage for trading partners and workflows.
• Support for popular SMS gateways and SMNP servers to make it easier to automate alerts and notifications.
• Project revision history tracking that allows you to restore workflows to previous versions.
• RSA RADIUS Login methods with Two-Factor-Authentication using key fobs or token apps.
• Additional logs and change history to track administrator user activity on the system.

View the complete list of version 5.2 enhancements on the GoAnywhere MFT release notes page.

We hear a lot from our customers about how much they love the GoAnywhere suite of managed file transfer products. From how much time and money they save by automating processes to becoming more efficient and able to attend other tasks, customer feedback is what inspires us to continue innovating and making our products even better.

It's gratifying to know that our customers enjoy GoAnywhere as much as we do. The amount of new customers referred from current GoAnywhere customers is a testament to how much they believe in our managed file transfer software and how it's often a game changer for businesses. As our way of saying Thank You, Linoma Software has created a referral program to reward our great customers for sharing their recommendations and GoAnywhere experience with others.

To participate, GoAnywhere customers can simply fill out an easy online form when they refer our products to others. They will be rewarded with $500 if the person or company they referred purchases GoAnywhere! It's that simple and there is no limit to the number of people or companies they can refer.

It's our way of saying Thank You to all the people and companies we love working with. If you are a GoAnywhere customer, be sure to enjoy the rewards of our referral program starting today! For additional information or to fill out our referral form, please visit our GoAnywhere Referral Program page. You can learn more about GoAnywhere and our customer experiences in their own words by visiting our Testimonials page or viewing our Customer Review Videos.