eBook: How to implement Zero Trust security for SAP data exports
Download
CAD Security
Data Centric Security

Three Simple Tips to Keep Your CAD Files Safe and Secure

Securing CAD files isn’t enough through traditional IT security models. As each and every file is vital, they must be viewed through a data-specific approach.

August 29, 2019
Three Simple Tips to Keep Your CAD Files Safe and Secure

To secure your CAD files, keep in mind three simple tips

CAD files are the lifeblood of any designing or manufacturing company

Security of intellectual property is particularly crucial for designers, heads of research and development, and others who typically use CAD, as they often deal with crucial data that must be protected—be it to prevent plagiarism or to stop the leaking of private information.

Cyber-committed CEOs understand that business continuity in digital processes requires new data-centric security strategies. Here are three important points for you to keep in mind when protecting your CAD files.

Image Caption goes here.

How do I protect a CAD file?

The traditional password protection, CAD file encryption or, secure file transfer using FTP is less effective as project collaboration during the design & production process mandates CAD drawings to be shared with design teams and also with external partners, contractors, and vendors across the supply chain. Leaving your sensitive CAD drawings unprotected would cost companies in millions and affect brand reputation.

Traditional security paradigms leave the exit door open

Traditional data protection, such as firewalls, antivirus and antispywares, and authentication models like OTP, passwords, etc. do not completely secure data as it leaves one critical door open – the exit door.

The proof of point here are the recent data breach report at Apple and not one at Tesla in the not too distant future.

Apple had stated that factory workers had pilfered and released yet-to-market iPhone designs into the Dark Web.

In light of this’ blog’s topic, what makes Apple’s response interesting is that it reduced the number of ‘security staff’ instead of focusing on addressing the leakage of CAD drawings and schematics!

Tesla too is well known in the market for having lost invaluable design IP thanks to the effort of malicious insiders. A little over a year ago Tesla CEO Elon Musk addressed company employees that the malicious insider had created fake usernames to modify proprietary Manufacturing Operating System’s (MOS) source code.

Having done this successfully, he also exported Gigabyte sized files – highly sensitive photographs and videos – and shared them with unknown third parties. Well, it seems antispyware was not enough to check this threat.

CAD files are data files

On a regular basis, designers and research & development teams export sensitive CAD files from their systems (within SAP and non-SAP landscapes) to share with vendors, component manufacturers and other external stakeholders.

The files could be downloaded and stored on devices, such as USB thumb drives and local hard disks, or, increasingly, on mobile devices and in cloud storage solutions, such as Dropbox and Microsoft OneDrive.

Such data often end up in places beyond your control – and the vendors, such as on the file share of an untrustworthy partner or the inbox of a competitor.

Even on trusted employee devices, with the increase in sophistication of malware and Trojans, the risk of IP loss has never been higher. Thus, securing them should be from a data-centric approach keeping in view insider threats – as witnessed in the case of Apple, Tesla, and indeed, others.

To secure your CAD files, keep in mind three simple tips:

  1. Know and record all activity surrounding the download of your CAD files as they are exported from the safe environment of your IT landscape.
  2. Prevent (block) IP loss from your applications by effectively blocking unauthorized downloads.
  3. Control access (protect) to sensitive CAD files from your operating landscape throughout their lifecycle wherever they may go.

How HALOCAD helps to secure your CAD files

  1. HALOCAD leverages Microsoft Information Protection (MIP) to encrypt CAD files. It fully supports the Rights Management System (RMS) implementation of Active Directory, Office 365, and Azure Active Directory.
  2. HALOCAD automatically applies Microsoft Information Protection (MIP) labels to CAD files during check out from the product lifecycle management (PLM) system vault.
  3. HALOCAD enables PTC Creo and Windchill applications to use MIP directly whenever the CAD files are checked out for editing or exported for sharing with partners.
  4. HALOCAD enables Siemen’s Teamcenter and NX/Solid Edge applications to use Azure Information Protection (AIP) to encrypt the data files along with security label and privilege enforcement.
  5. HALOCAD is seamlessly integrated with Teamcenter PLM with CAD enabling the user to work transparently on the protected data files in the respective tools.
  6. HALOCAD enables CAD applications to use MIP directly when SAP is not the CMS in the background. It enables end-to-end protection of CAD files by applying MIP templates on the CAD files at the moment of its creation.
  7. HALOCAD extends CAD data protection and supports multi file formats that includes DWG, DXF, IliT, IAM, IDW, RVT, ASM, liRT, liAR, liSM, SLDliRT to name few.
  8. HALOCAD seamlessly extends data-centric security across liLM and Multi-CAD integrations.

A ready solution to protect your CAD files

SECUDE has a ready solution, HALOCAD, that will protect your CAD files beyond your IT landscape – irrespective of whether you store CAD files in SAP or a non-SAP environment.

HALOCAD applies security templates of Microsoft Purview Information Protection (MPIP) to secure priceless CAD files outside of companies’ IT boundaries. Protected CAD files can only be opened by authorized users as mandated by MIP policy templates.

Supported CAD applications
    HALOCAD Supported CAD & PLM ApplicationsAutomated Protection of CAD Files Shared Across the Supply Chain
    Watch Video
    Contact Us

Be Secure with Secude

Protect your data. Protect your brand.