Disco Corporation

About Disco:

Established in 1937, Disco Corporation (http://www.disco.co.jp/eg/index.html) originally developed three core technologies known as Kiru-Kezuru-Migaku (Cut-Sharpen-Polish). These three areas of know-how enabled the company to grow into an industry-leading manufacturer of precision processing machinery (dicing saws and grinders) as well as supplementary tools used primarily in the production of semiconductors and electronic components.

Disco technology is not limited to sophisticated hardware equipment; it also provides a set of powerful applications that ensure highly efficient industrial processes.

In its field, Disco has a global market share of over 70%.

The Challenge:

The nature of modern business means there is a very real risk that precision machinery like dicing saws can be compromised by USB memory devices infected by malware. There are also secondary threats posed by the host communication network.

Until now, those threats have been addressed by strictly adhering to security policies, which relies heavily on the vigilance of the individual operators. However, Disco sought a different approach, addressing the security issues on its own products to make them secure regardless of the customer’s environment. In other words, the company wanted to ensure that the highest level of security solution was built into its products.

The Solution:

On 21 October, 2008, Disco and Kaspersky Lab held a joint press conference to announce the first ever integration of an antivirus solution with industrial machinery. The target product line consisted of dicing saws widely used in various industrial processes, from the production of silicon wafers to IC chip processing.

Disco eventually chose Kaspersky Lab solutions, citing the company’s detection rates, reaction times to new security threats, as well as an extensive OEM project tracking record.

Kaspersky Lab security software will now be embedded as a standard option within the dicing saw equipment sold by Disco. Software activation can be performed remotely at the customer’s request.

In the event of an infected USB memory device being connected to the cutting equipment, the Kaspersky Lab solution will not only prevent system infection, but also report the USB device as infected, allowing the customer to take prompt action to eliminate the company’s internal security threats.

The latest antivirus signatures are available for download from Disco’s server, which is synchronized with Kaspersky Lab’s servers, ensuring a constantly up-to-date status.

Conclusion:

Security software has traditionally been seen as something required by PCs and mobile devices. However, over the last few years, powerful operating systems have also been introduced to cars, consumer electronics and industrial-scale machinery, making them vulnerable to a new kind of threat – namely malware.

By integrating security software to its products, Disco has demonstrated a clear commitment as an industry leader to protect its customers’ from the new threats generated by sociological and technological changes. In order to do this, Disco Corporation adopted Kaspersky Lab technology because its antivirus engine allows flexible customization to suit the user environment, is supported by innovative technology, and comes with a solid support system – points that were deemed even more critical than the widely acknowledged superiority of Kaspersky Lab’s malware detection rate.

Today, as industries worldwide are taking the first steps towards introducing IT security to industrial-scale machinery, this agreement proves Kaspersky Lab products satisfy the most elaborate performance requirements. We believe this achievement anticipates a huge transformation within the global industry of embedded technology.