CA IDMS Centralized Security Overview › Security Administration

Security Administration

In the data processing environment, security administration, whether performed by a full-time security administrator in a large shop or by a DBA in a small shop, is a vital component of corporate success.

Why Secure Your System?

You secure your system to do the following:

• Protect confidential information from deliberate or accidental exposure
• Maintain the integrity of your corporate databases and dictionaries
• Prohibit or deter unauthorized access
• Meet corporate and departmental security standards
• Fulfill government and Department of Defense (DOD) requirements
• Adhere to privacy laws

Security Strategy

A comprehensive corporate security strategy must account for all types of physical and electronic access to systems, including the following:

• Physical access to the computer room
• Electronic access to the computer room (such as by dial-in lines)
• Access to hardware
• Access to software
• Access to corporate databases
• Access to applications
• Access to production, test, and quality assurance (QA) systems
• Access to data sets

A strategy that has not considered all types of authorized and unauthorized access is open to intentional and accidental corruption.

Installing and Implementing Security

A security system needs to be installed and then implemented. A common approach to organizing this process is to designate the following:

• A security administrator who manages and coordinates overall information security for the site
• A team that helps the security administrator plan for, install, and implement the security system

CA IDMS Centralized Security Administration

The security approach described in the previous section is well suited for CA IDMS centralized security administration. Three important reasons are as follows:

• CA IDMS centralized security can interface with an external security software system to protect CA IDMS resources.
• All CA IDMS authorities derive from the absolute authority of the security administrator.
• You can easily delegate to DCAs and DBAs the set of authorities they need to administer security on resources that are specific to systems and databases.