A netting system handles corporate payments and therefore must be secure.
NT Netting has been developed with robust and flexible security
in mind. The features include the following:
| License
control and registration |
The system requires the Netting Centre to register any installed
version. This prevents any corporate from using an unlicensed copy.
Depending on the code, the registration will expire after a certain
number of months after which a new code must be entered. This allows
demonstration versions to be installed but also helps ensure that
every corporate is using a recent version of the product.
|
| Backup
and restore |
It is possible to backup and
restore data from within the application. This backup is compressed
so as to save disk space. |
| Check-summing
on import and export |
It is possible to configure the
system to include checksums with exported data including messages
and payment instructions. It is also possible to require a checksum
on imported transaction files. Imported files can also be required
to include a control total. |
| Features
to prevent actions being performed on the wrong data (post status,
compute status, period locking, future period login, etc.) |
A considerable amount logic ensures that actions are not performed
on old or invalid data. For instance, if one tries to generate the
participant messages, the system will first ensure that there are
no outstanding import errors awaiting processing. It then verifies
the relationship between the invoices and the gross flows is up
to date, automatically recalculating them if necessary. It then
ensures that the computation is likewise up to date. Messages are
deleted when a change is made that would invalidate them.
Any lengthy processes are done only when necessary to ensure that
the user is not frustrated by unnecessary calculations. Also, all
operations include the ability to cancel thereby reducing user frustration
when a long process has been accidentally initiated.
|
| Controlled
access via username and password |
Access to the system
is controlled by user name and password functionality. |
| User
rights can be configured per user |
A full user-maintenance module
is included with NT Netting. This allows each individual user
of the system to be granted specific rights on a per-function and
per-user basis. It is possible, for instance, to restrict a user from
deleting invoices or from generating deal confirmations. |
| Complete
audit trail. |
All major events are logged with
date, time and user name. This provides an invaluable source of information
for system use analysis and error tracking. |
| Data
encryption |
All databases can be encrypted.
This ensures that no third party packages such as Access can be used
to modify the data. |
| IP
address checking and login/password security |
The system includes considerable
ability for configuring the interface with the IntraNetting
product. This includes being able to restrict Intranet access to specific
IP addresses (per participant) and also controls access via a user
name and password. |
| Dual
key authorisation option |
It is possible to require all
changes to be authorised by two users, i.e., that every change must
be reviewed and approved by another (different) user. This very powerful
security feature can be configured per table. This can be used in
conjunction with the user rights security functions. |
| Double
entry of rates |
For entry of the netting rates,
it is necessary to key in each value twice. This minimises the chance
of rate entry errors. |
| Percentage
change check for rates |
In addition to the dual-entry,
it is possible to configure the system so that it issues a warning
when the rate differs by more than, say, 10% from the previous month’s
rate. |
| Third
party thresholds |
For each third party in the netting,
it is possible to configure a limit to the volume of payments (either
per transaction or on the total volume for that participant). If payments
exceed this limit, then a warning is issued. |
