DORA Regulation
MAP OUT YOUR PATH TO DORA REGULATION COMPLIANCE WITH PORTNOX'S CLOUD-NATIVE NETWORK ACCESS CONTRO (NAC)
Prior to the passage of the Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA), compliance standards for financial institutions across the E.U. were a confusing mess. In an effort to streamline these standards, DORA created a framework for information and communication technology risk management so that consumers could feel safe about who they trusted with their money. Today, NAC is helping companies meet DORA compliance requirements.
Explore how NAC aligns with DORA regulation compliance
Enhanced Access Control
NAC solutions play a crucial role in enhancing cybersecurity within organizations by enforcing strict access controls. These controls can help align with DORA regulation cybersecurity objectives by ensuring that only authorized personnel and devices can access critical systems and data. Strong access control is Portnox Cloud’s specialty. Utilizing the 802.1X protocol - the gold-standard for network access protocol – Portnox can deliver robust authentication and authorization across wired, wireless, and VPN connections. For IoT devices that typically don’t support 802.1x, we have IoT Device Trust, which not only fingerprints IoT devices with 96% accuracy but also looks for anomalous behavior to prevent MAC address spoofing. If your security camera starts acting like a laptop, Portnox will alert you and kick it off the network.
Risk Assessment and Mitigation
NAC solutions often include features for continuous monitoring and risk assessment of devices connected to the network. This aligns with DORA's focus on identifying and mitigating cybersecurity risks in the financial sector. NAC can provide real-time visibility into the devices and users accessing financial networks, allowing organizations to detect and respond to security threats more effectively. Portnox not only offers continuous risk assessment based on security policies you create, but we have automated remediation options that will take the guesswork out of access for your users and IT staff. Windows firewall not running? We’ll start it. Unauthorized USB drive? We’ll eject it. You can define policies for a plethora of devices, from smartphones to linux workstations.
Compliance with Regulatory Requirements
DORA imposes specific cybersecurity and operational resilience requirements on financial entities operating within the EU. NAC can help organizations demonstrate compliance with these requirements by providing audit trails, access logs, and other documentation that show how access controls and security policies are enforced. This can simplify the compliance reporting process for financial institutions. Portnox Cloud uses RADIUS for AAA services – Authorization, Authentication, and Accounting, so you can keep track of who is on your network and when. We also offer alerting and reporting options that can provide you an overview of what is happening with your network and let you know of any issues. Portnox Cloud will make sure you are in the know when it counts.
Incident Response and Reporting
DORA regulation requires financial entities to have robust incident response plans and reporting mechanisms in place. NAC can assist in incident response by quickly isolating compromised devices from the network and limiting the spread of threats. Additionally, NAC can generate reports and logs that can be used for incident documentation and reporting, helping organizations meet their DORA regulation compliance obligations. IoT devices are particularly susceptible to data breaches, and Portnox Cloud’s IoT device trust was created with that in mind. Not only do we have highly accurate IoT Fingerprinting, but if your security camera starts acting like a laptop we can automatically quarantine or completely remove it from the network.
Data Protection
DORA regulation also emphasizes data protection and the importance of safeguarding sensitive financial data. NAC can help protect data by ensuring that only authorized users and devices have access to financial systems and data repositories. It can also prevent unauthorized data exfiltration attempts by restricting the movement of data to and from unauthorized devices. Role-based access is key to making sure your sensitive data is safe – only people who should have access to it will have access to it. Another key aspect is segmentation – making sure that if someone is one part of the network, their movement to other parts is restricted. Portnox Cloud will make sure no one is traveling across your network viewing sensitive data.
Enhanced Authentication
NAC solutions often integrate with MFA systems to provide an additional layer of security. DORA recommends strong authentication measures, and NAC can enforce MFA for users accessing financial systems, helping organizations comply with these recommendations. Experts agree simple passwords are not enough – in fact, compromised passwords are responsible for the vast majority of all data breaches. Portnox Cloud can integrate with your MFA systems or even better, help you go passwordless for the best authentication security possible. Certificate-based authentication is phishing and social engineering proof, along with providing a better user experience and saving your IT teams time, and Portnox Cloud makes it easy.
Product Brief
NAC is an essential tool to have in your backpack for DORA regulation
Simplifying things is always a worthwhile goal. Now’s your chance to simplify network access control and fall in line with DORA regulation requirements. Find out how the Portnox Cloud is helping organizations of all sizes revamp and strengthen their access control faster than ever.
FAQs about the NCUA ACET
The Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) is a European Union (EU) regulation that sets out a comprehensive framework for managing ICT risks in the financial sector. It applies to all financial institutions and critical third-party ICT service providers in the EU.
The key areas of DORA regulation are:
- ICT Risk Management: DORA requires financial institutions to implement a robust ICT risk management framework that covers all aspects of ICT risk, including identification, assessment, mitigation, and monitoring.
- Incident Reporting: DORA requires financial institutions to report significant ICT-related incidents to the relevant authorities.
- Operational Resilience Testing: DORA requires financial institutions to conduct regular operational resilience testing to identify and address any vulnerabilities in their systems and processes.
- ICT Third-Party Risk Monitoring: DORA requires financial institutions to have adequate measures in place to manage the risks associated with outsourcing critical functions or services to third-party ICT service providers.
DORA also includes a number of other requirements, such as requirements for data management, security, and governance.
Here is a summary of the key requirements in each area:
ICT Risk Management
- Establish a comprehensive ICT risk management framework.
- Identify and assess all ICT risks.
- Implement appropriate mitigation measures to reduce ICT risks to an acceptable level.
- Monitor ICT risks on an ongoing basis and make adjustments to the risk management framework as needed.
Incident Reporting
- Report significant ICT-related incidents to the relevant authorities within a specified timeframe.
- Provide the authorities with all relevant information about the incident, including its impact on financial services, the steps taken to mitigate the impact, and the steps taken to prevent similar incidents from happening in the future.
Operational Resilience Testing
- Conduct regular operational resilience testing to identify and address any vulnerabilities in systems and processes.
- Test all critical business services, processes, and IT systems.
- Engage in scenario-based testing to assess the ability to respond to a variety of disruptions.
- Review and update operational resilience testing plans on an ongoing basis.
ICT Third-Party Risk Monitoring
- Identify and assess the risks associated with outsourcing critical functions or services to third-party ICT service providers.
- Implement appropriate measures to mitigate these risks, such as due diligence, contractual arrangements, and ongoing monitoring.
- Have a plan in place to manage the disruption of critical services or functions provided by third-party ICT service providers.
DORA is a significant piece of legislation that aims to strengthen the operational resilience of the EU financial sector. It is important for financial institutions to start preparing for compliance with DORA as soon as possible.
The following organizations must comply with DORA:
- Financial institutions: All financial institutions in the EU, including banks, investment firms, insurance companies, and crypto-asset service providers.
- Critical third-party ICT service providers: ICT service providers that provide critical services to financial institutions, such as cloud service providers, software vendors, and managed service providers.
Critical third-party ICT service providers are defined as providers that:
- Provide a critical service to a financial institution.
- Have a significant impact on the financial institution's ability to provide its services.
- Are exposed to a high risk of disruption or failure.
The European Supervisory Authorities (ESAs) will be responsible for determining which third-party ICT service providers are considered critical.
Financial institutions and critical third-party ICT service providers have until January 17, 2025 to comply with DORA.
To comply with DORA regulation, financial institutions and critical third-party ICT service providers should take the following steps:
- Assess their ICT risks. This includes identifying all of the ICT risks that the organization faces, as well as assessing the likelihood and impact of each risk.
- Implement a risk management framework. This framework should include policies, procedures, and controls to mitigate the identified risks.
- Develop a business continuity plan. This plan should outline how the organization will respond to and recover from ICT-related disruptions.
- Conduct regular operational resilience testing. This testing should assess the ability of the organization's systems and processes to withstand and recover from ICT-related disruptions.
Monitor third-party ICT service providers. This includes assessing the risks associated with outsourcing critical functions or services to third-party ICT service providers, and implementing appropriate mitigation measures.
The Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) was created to strengthen the operational resilience of the EU financial sector. It aims to do this by:
- Requiring financial institutions and critical third-party ICT service providers to implement a comprehensive ICT risk management framework.
- Requiring financial institutions to report significant ICT-related incidents to the relevant authorities.
- Requiring financial institutions to conduct regular operational resilience testing.
- Requiring financial institutions to have adequate measures in place to manage the risks associated with outsourcing critical functions or services to third-party ICT service providers.
DORA was created in response to a number of factors, including:
- The increasing reliance of the financial sector on ICT.
- The growing sophistication and frequency of cyber attacks.
- The increasing interconnectedness of the financial system.
DORA is a significant piece of legislation that aims to address these challenges and protect the EU financial system from ICT-related risks.
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