A North American government agency with more than 1,500 employees needed to give citizens better ways to perform civic data sharing remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Vital services like issuing building permits, reporting crimes, paying parking fees, and processing property tax payments can now be done online securely, thanks to the power of GoAnywhere MFT and the Clearswift Secure ICAP Gateway.
Newly Remote Workforce Meant Expanding Agency’s File Transfer Solution
For the past four years, this government agency has relied on GoAnywhere Managed File Transfer (MFT) to securely share data. Because they share so many files daily between citizens, payment processors, law enforcement, and tax departments, keeping this data encrypted, automated, and managed in a centralized fashion was vital both to maintain data security as well as keep government operations running efficiently.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the need for a secure and reliable remote portal for citizens to submit forms for building permits and other applications quickly became apparent. The agency didn’t want to see its essential services grind to a halt. Moving functions online to provide continuity for citizens who could no longer conduct their business in-person became a high priority. Luckily, the agency already had a robust secure managed file transfer solution in place that offered options to quickly help with these challenges.
To allow citizens to continue to remotely apply for building permits, pay their taxes, and more, the agency decided to expand its GoAnywhere usage. Adding GoAnywhere Secure Forms functionality was an expedient way to replace their usual face-to-face interactions and give citizens the ability to upload sensitive data with the assurance it would be protected at rest and in motion.
Secure Forms Kept Government Business Moving
Secure Forms allows citizens to submit information for permits, payments, etc., online through secure, custom-made forms. Once the form is submitted, GoAnywhere executes the process through automated workflows so that human intervention is no longer needed to keep business flowing.
Beyond expanding how files were transferred and forms were created, the agency’s new dependency on remote work and data exchange required layered security solutions to ensure the information being shared was secure end-to-end for its citizen customers and for the agency itself.
Adding Data Loss Prevention Sanitized Data Exchanged in Both Directions
As part of this upgrade, the agency added another Fortra security solution, the Clearswift Secure ICAP Gateway, to provide an additional layer of automated security to sensitive information that flows through its file transfers, either out of the agency’s network or into it. With “business as usual” already disrupted, adding the Secure ICAP Gateway enables the agency to make sure the data remote users upload is safe and free of malware, viruses, or hidden metadata that shouldn’t be shared.
The Secure ICAP Gateway automatically inspects the content it receives or sends for any sensitive information. Rather than “stop and block” the data, it allows business to carry on, only redacting questionable content based on the agency’s security policies, to reduce unnecessary business disruptions. The solution also scans for viruses and, if detected, blocks or redacts the data as necessary.
GoAnywhere’s out-of-the-box integration with ICAP Gateway makes this process smooth and streamlined. Having worked with Fortra for years, the agency values the ease of working with one vendor for multiple security needs, as well as the seamless integration of GoAnywhere MFT and Clearswift DLP.
DLP and MFT Combination Delivers Higher Level of Security
With MFT already in place, moving files inside and outside the agency is automated and secure, allowing for collaboration even in a remote environment. And with the ICAP Gateway in place, employees can be confident that malicious content will be intercepted and only clean files will be shared, protecting the agency from harmful or infected data.
With citizens counting on the government to help them take care of routine applications, payments, and permits in a timely fashion, the agency relies on Fortra to help keep the wheels of government turning smoothly, and, even during challenging times, to continue delivering the customer service and security its citizens expect.
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