SNB, SIX Join Forces on Cybersecurity

The Swiss National Bank and exchange operator SIX are joining forces to make the domestic financial center more resilient to cyber attacks.

The Swiss National Bank and exchange operator SIX are launching a communications network called the Secure Swiss Finance Network to enhance cybersecurity, they said in a press release Thursday.

The aim of the SSFN is secure, flexible and resilient data communication, they said.

The SSFN is a monitored and protected network that allows authorized participants operating in the Swiss financial center to communicate securely with each other and with financial market infrastructures. This is intended to increase the security and stability of communication with the SIC payment system and other SIX services, the statement said.

ETH Software

The network is based on SCION technology developed at Zurich’s Federal Institute of Technology (ETH). This network architecture makes it possible to control which parties may use the communication network and which path data take when being transmitted from sender to receiver.

Telecoms Involved

The SSFN has been developed in close collaboration with telecommunications companies Sunrise UPC, Swisscom and SWITCH as well as the SCION software provider Anapaya Systems. The participation of several telecom companies improves the resilience and flexibility of communication within the network, the SNB and SIX said.

The SSFN is expected to go live in November 2021 and will initially run in parallel with SIX’s existing, already highly secure communication service. The SSFN will replace this service in the medium term, however, due to its superior flexibility and functionality, the press release said.