PCI-Compliant Networks for Retail

Retailers were among the first to adopt wireless LAN technology because of the mobile nature of store and warehouse operations. While mobile data, bar code scanning, voice, and voice-response applications are typical in this environment, in recent years security has risen to the forefront as a key requirement for retail deployments.

As a result of security breaches, the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standards were defined to help prevent the theft of consumers' data, and in September of 2006, the PCI Security Standards Council released version 1.1 of the PCI standard. Compliance with the standard is mandatory, and non-compliant participating companies can be barred from processing credit card transactions, charged higher processing fees, or fined.

Enterprise Compliance Management

Aruba offers solutions for small, medium, and large retailers that support converged data, voice, and video applications while complying with PCI security requirements. For example, Aruba's resilient Secure Enterprise Mesh technology addresses PCI-compliance using an all-wireless network that doesn't require replacement of the legacy network infrastructure or wiring plant - and it can be deployed without requiring an on-site controller. Used with 802.1a/b/g or 802.11n access points, the solution can be overlaid on any legacy network, defends against network breaches, and provides retailers with client-to-core secure networking of point-of-sale devices, bar code readers, mobile computers, printers, telephones, PCs, and related devices in retail stores, warehouses, storage depots, and office buildings.

Secure Enterprise Mesh technology enables retailers to cost-effectively meet rigorous client-to-core security and privacy standards, while simultaneously reaping productivity and cost-saving benefits from mobile data, voice, and video applications.

Aruba Offers Solutions Tailored for Small, Medium, and Large Retailers

Aruba's Remote Access Point technology is the most cost-effective solution for small stores. Remote Access Point software provides enterprise connectivity and follow-me security by enabling role-based user access controls, stateful firewall and split-tunneling in any Aruba 802.11n or 802.11a/b/g access point into which it is loaded. To optimize local traffic flow to the retailer's data center, the software's split-tunneling feature directs only corporate traffic back to the Mobility Controller, while Internet access and printer traffic remain local. Security policies are centrally managed from the data centers, allowing central IT staff to manage large and widely dispersed branches.

For medium and large branches Aruba offers a variety of Mobility Controllers, including an 80Gpbs controller for massively scalable applications, to provide locally autonomous operation using policies that are centrally managed from, and enforced by, remote data centers. Mobility Controllers can enforce policies across legacy wired networks as well as Aruba wireless LAN and mesh networks, eliminating the need for a parallel wired network policy enforcement system. To ensure business-continuity in the event of a data center problem, both Remote Access Point and Mobility Controller-based solutions support redundant data centers.

Replacing legacy wireless LANs, including those with Fat APs, is simple. In the case of a small retail store a Remote Access Point is simply swapped for the legacy access point - no local configuration is required, and no local IT staff is needed. The Remote Access Point will find a pathway back to the data center, establish a secure IPsec tunnel, automatically extract its configuration from the central controller, and start working.

Legacy access points in medium and large stores are swapped for Aruba access points and one or more Mobility Controllers. The Mobility Controllers manage fast roaming, security, dynamic radio channel management, best-path mesh configuration, and fail-over redundancy. Unlike alternatives that combine an access point and controller in one device, a Mobility Controller can be maintained and managed without using a ladder to access ceiling-mounted equipment or dispatching IT staff. Aruba's Secure Enterprise Mesh provides robust wireless networking and toll-quality voice with QoS, and is ideally suited to stores and warehouses where building churn would other require continuous rewiring of conventional wired and wireless networks.