Security Aspects of Currency Data Connections

TOPIC

Q: What are the security implications of the software accessing the internet to download new exchange rate data?

DISCUSSION

A: The default data transport mechanism used by the software is HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol), i.e. the same protocol used by browsers to access web sites. This does not require any configuration changes in firewalls, proxy servers, routers and similar systems, and does not compromise in any way the security features which are in place on the network.

The currency data being exchanged is always in plain text format, and contains no executable code that could host "virus" or other harmful programs.

Also see:

• 3-137 - Support for Proxy Servers and Firewalls
• Currency Server Security Analysis