CIMCO strengthens network security with own protocol

BK-Trans allows us to confidently and securely connect any old Windows-based CNC to a customer’s network and thereby to communicate with our software. For new controls, BK-Trans simply offers an additional layer of security.

In recent years we’ve seen an increase in customers who restrict access to network protocols such as SMB, NFS and FTP. Often due to company policy to strengthen IT security across company networks and prevent unwanted intrusion attempts.

While we encourage any company to think IT security, much of our software solutions rely on these protocols for facilitating file operations and communicating with CNCs – including those outdated and thus vulnerable Windows-based CNC controls.

However, without privileges to use these protocols and having network access to customer CNCs, our software cannot do its job.

Secure network communication with BK-Trans

In order to solve this recurring problem and to provide secure network communication between CIMCOs software and customer equipment, we have developed our own protocol called BK-Trans. A proprietary protocol that is not targeted by malware and that allows us to control both sides of the data transfer.

BK-Trans is structured as a client/server application with the server embedded in our software and clients installed on the CNCs. The protocol builds on TCP and allows for a restricted set of commands to be issued. It relies on TCP mechanisms to ensure safe delivery of data across a network.

Because BK-Trans is our own protocol, we can extend and modify it to accommodate specific customer requirements encountered throughout site installations. We also have updates in the pipeline such as the option to use data traffic encryption.

BK-Trans has been released as part of CIMCO Software version 8.10.00.

Please contact us to learn more about BK-Trans and how our software can be of value to your company – while retaining a strong focus on network security.