The City of Essen Secures Electronic Files with bowbridge
The Challenge
As a central IT and telephone service provider with around 240 employees, the Essen Systemhaus (ESH) manages and advises more than 40 different departments, institutes and in-house operations for the City of Essen in northwest Germany.
ESH was tasked with developing an SAP-based process for City of Essen administrators to electronically file documents. However, ESH also needed to safeguard operations. “The direct upload of files by users brings significant efficiency, but also considerable risks — not only for the electronic file, but also for the SAP system as a whole,” explains Raimund Fechtner, head of the Consultation and Application Development department of SAP Basic Services at ESH.
ESH began the search for an external solution to protect against viruses, malware and other file-based threats. “In addition to security, the focus was on minimizing the impact on performance in order to ensure long-term user acceptance,” says Michael Rudwilleit, who is responsible for Users and Authorizations in SAP Base Administration as well as for SAP security for ESH.
At a Glance
Customer:
Essen Systemhaus (ESH)
Industry:
Central IT and telephone services provider for the City of Essen
Challenge:
To permit the uploading of files by administrative staff and personnel into ESH’s SAP system, without the risks of malware or performance degradation.
Solution:
bowbridge Anti-Virus for SAP Solutions
Results:
Increased operational efficiency thanks to digital storage of relevant data, with maximum protection against malware, viruses and other file-based threats.
“We evaluated the products that are available on the current market and also consulted the opinions of other SAP users. The benefits of bowbridge Anti-Virus for SAP Solutions are obvious.”
— Raimund Fechtner, Head of Consultation and Application Development at ESH
The Solution
The SolutionAfter an intensive evaluation of different providers, the team decided on bowbridge Anti-Virus for SAP Solutions. According to Fechtner, “We evaluated the products that are available on the current market and also consulted the opinions of other SAP users. The benefits of bowbridge Anti-Virus for SAP Solutions are obvious.”
As the only four-time SAP-certified security solution on the market, Anti-Virus for SAP Solutions meets the requirements of NW-VSI 2.0 and therefore seamlessly integrates with SAP’s own monitoring and protocol functions. However, before Fechtner was willing to go live, he put the entire functionality of Anti-Virus for SAP Solutions to the test in a 40-day trial period.
During the evaluation, Fechtner’s team collaborated with key users to compile a list of essential file formats that would need to be accepted into the SAP system. Anti- Virus for SAP Solutions was then used to filter MIME-type files, blocking certain content completely and screening others for hidden malware. In contrast to SAP’s standard filter function, Anti-Virus for SAP Solutions identifies MIME type on the basis of the content, not on the file extension.
The test proved to be a resounding success. As Fechtner explains, “No adjustments to the application or changes to the upload scenario were necessary, and the implementation went smoothly.”
“With bowbridge Anti-Virus for SAP Solutions, we can now completely protect the file upload without losing any system performance or functionality.”
— Raimund Fechtner, Head of Consultation and Application Development at ESH
The Results
The ResultsWith the electronic filing system now fully functional, the City of Essen has made administrative processes easier and much more efficient for employees. By also implementing bowbridge Anti-Virus for SAP, ESH has ensured the highest levels of security and operational continuity – all with minimal implementation effort.
“The malware scanning has no noticeable impact on the overall system performance,” Rudwilleit says. “Users can easily operate the electronic filing system without any restrictions. With bowbridge Anti-Virus for SAP Solutions, we can now completely protect the file upload without losing any system performance or functionality”.
