Optimizing Remote Access with Netop on AWS: The Sigma Financial Group Story
The Sigma Financial Group provides diverse customer contact services to the UK’s leading businesses. Senior Systems Administrator Ben Bowen describes the key reasons why Sigma chose Netop, running on the robust AWS cloud infrastructure, as their system-wide remote access solution.
SECURE VENDOR ACCESS VIA AWS-Powered Netop
“Our software vendors need to remotely access our network to support their products. This happens on a weekly, sometimes daily basis. Guaranteeing secure access via two-factor authentication, facilitated by Netop’s secure AWS environment, is key to this process, as well as the ability to log and audit any remote connections. This way we know exactly who is connecting, when, and for how long. The AWS cloud ensures the reliability and security of these connections.”
PCI COMPLIANCE AND THE AWS ADVANTAGE
“We previously used a variety of remote connection tools to manage vendor access. Some vendors would use TeamViewer, some would use LogMeIn, etc. However, these tools weren’t particularly feature-rich, and a recent PCI audit highlighted weaknesses in this approach. That’s when we started to look for an alternative solution.
Much of our work involves managing customer payments, so PCI DSS compliance is an absolute must. That’s where Netop, hosted on AWS, really comes into its own. Every remote session is logged in full, and screen recording ensures we can see all vendor activity during these sessions. Running Netop on AWS provides the added benefit of AWS’s inherent security and compliance features, reinforcing our PCI DSS stance.”
CENTRALIZED MANAGEMENT WITH AWS SCALABILITY
“With Netop we can simply direct our vendors to an online portal, so no software needs to be installed or configured on their side. We centrally manage the vendor accounts and decide who should be granted secure access to our systems and when. AWS ensures the platform can scale to meet our evolving needs.”
THE RIGHT FEATURES AT THE RIGHT PRICE, WITH AWS RELIABILITY
“With the combination of features and cost, Netop was the most attractive solution. Our free trial of Netop, powered by the reliable AWS cloud, was a success, and this quickly settled our decision. We knew we wanted the product as it’s a perfect fit for our requirements. We are currently expanding the implementation to grant select users’ remote access to their workstations – instead of using a VPN to access our network, they will use Netop, hosted on AWS, to remotely control their desktop PCs.”
OUTSTANDING SUPPORT, BACKED BY AWS INFRASTRUCTURE
“The quality of support we’ve received from Netop and their UK partner, Maitek Solutions, has been excellent, even during the free trial process. Every time we raise an issue, no matter how small, the response is almost immediate. Knowing that the platform is backed by the robust infrastructure of AWS gives us added confidence in its performance.”