Secure connectivity

The DCU uses passive connections to tap into a segment of a critical network so as to unobtrusively monitor a full-duplex data stream, independent of the protocol used. The DCU is not detectable on the network nor will the network be disrupted should the DCU fail. The DCU may be removed or serviced without impacting traffic in the critical network.

The DCU ensures that there is no direct conduction path between the critical network being monitored and the open network. Galvanic isolation between the critical and open networks prevents errant or unwanted electrical currents that could disrupt or damage the critical network.

For each critical network segment monitored by the DCU, the transmit driver of the Ethernet physical layer implementation is not connected. In fact, the transmit connection is not even addressed. This makes it physically impossible to interfere with or transmit to the critical network segment being monitored.

An intrusion detection system (IDS) is a network security technology for detecting vulnerability exploits against a target network. The ability to set up a trustworthy network connection using a DCU allows intrusion detection systems to monitor critical networks for abnormal and/or malicious activities. The DCU provides for passive, unidirectional data capture with no interference to the network.

A juridical recording system (JRS) provides long term storage of network data for future analysis in a forensic or legal investigation. A DCU allows the collection of data at the earliest possible point while ensuring privacy and data integrity thanks to the use of TLS-secured connections. For each record captured, it is possible to prove that a specific DCU captured the data and that it has not been manipulated with since.

Businesses need to extract valuable data from critical industrial control systems (such as factories, plants, trains, railway signaling systems, etc.) for remote condition monitoring, management services, and to improve efficiency through data analytics. Operating as a network tap or sophisticated one-way gateway supporting application specific protocols, the DCU provides a trusted connection to critical networks without introducing accessible and exploitable vulnerabilities.