News

New IBM X-Force Red Labs to incorporate ATM vulnerability testing

August 6, 2018

IBM Security has launched X-Force Red Labs, a network of four facilities — to include the company's ATM testing practice — in response to increased demand for securing financial transaction systems.

X-Force Red, a team of veteran hackers within IBM Security, will work to find vulnerabilities in hardware and software products before and after they are deployed, according to a press release. Labs will be located in Atlanta, Georgia; Austin, Texas; Hursley, England; and Melbourne, Australia.

"IBM X-Force Red has one mission: Hack anything to secure everything," Charles Henderson, global managing partner for X-Force Red, said in the release. "Via X-Force Red Labs, we have the ability to do just that, in a secure and controlled environment. Whether it's the newest smart phone that hasn't been released, an internet-connected refrigerator or a new ATM, we have the capability to test, identify, and help our clients remediate vulnerabilities before the bad guys can exploit them."

The X-Force Red ATM testing service team works to identify and help remediate physical, hardware and software vulnerabilities within bank ATMs. Their services include:

• Comprehensive ATM evaluation — searching and evaluating physical, network, application and computer system security for vulnerabilities that a criminal hacker might exploit.
• Attack-minded testing — hacking into ATMs using the same tools and methods a criminal would use, in order to identify vulnerabilities.
• Compliance assessment — reviewing ATM logs to help FIs stay in compliance with industry standards such as PCI DSS.
• Vulnerability remediation recommendations — comprehensive reports with recommendations for hardening ATM systems and defenses.

According to the release, research by the Ponemon Institute has found that it can cost an organization nearly 30 times more to fix software vulnerabilities and flaws discovered after production than it would to identify and fix them during the design phase.