GILAI: Providing the best managed IT services across Switzerland with Proton Pass
At a glance
Company Profile: GILAI
Industry: Software development | Wealth management | Financial consulting
Company size: 11-50
Problem: GILAI needed to help offices in different locations adhere to a strict cybersecurity standard, protecting sensitive data and sharing it safely when necessary.
Achievement: GILAI now includes Proton Pass as part of its core services for the six offices it manages and plans to roll it out further.
Why Proton Pass was the right fit:
End-to-end encrypted and ISO 27001 compliant
Ability to share sensitive data with secure links and shared vaults
It gives admins oversight into user activity
Admins can easily enforce 2FA, turn off outside sharing, and revoke access
In Switzerland, disability insurance offices (DIAs) are the public law institutions that manage disability insurance throughout Switzerland, operating independently across the country. DIAs operate independently, which can present challenges in providing consistent services across the country
GILAI is a non-profit organization providing IT management for 20 DIAs in Switzerland. Day to day, GILAI manages the IT environments for storing customer data and handling queries, and ensuring that all systems work effectively and securely. The team also supports the offices with data analysis and training where required.
GILAI collaborates closely with each DIA, ensuring that IT systems work effectively and securely. The team helps each office deliver timely service to customers and creates workflows for maximum efficiency. A big part of that task was finding a reliable password manager: Insurance applicant data is sensitive and needs to be stored in accordance with Swiss data regulations. Employee passwords must be secured sufficiently, and employees require a password management tool that would be easy to adopt and work with their needs.
Meeting legal data management standards
To maintain high standards across multiple locations, GILAI wanted a password manager that could fit into their existing architecture. Workers at AI offices that GILAI manages don't need added difficulty when it comes to their tech, whether it's legacy solutions that aren't efficient or systems that aren't customized for the needs of their particular DIAs. Jihane Islis, ICT & Cybersecurity Specialist at GILAI, noted that:
"we wanted a password manager that's easy to use and easy to manage for the administrators and for the end users."
GILAI prioritized this ease of use when it was looking for a password manager, seeking a tool that would be easy to deploy and manage remotely.
Islis noted that GILAI also wanted to share vaults with between teams, both at GILAI and within the DIA offices. It was vital that workers could share information easily and securely. DIA teams needed to be able to create controlled spaces to store passwords where only employees with permission could access them.
As DIA teams work with sensitive information, including names and addresses, they must be compliant with Swiss data regulations, particularly the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Federal Data Protection Act (LPD). Not only would a password manager have to take this into account, it would also need to provide tools for employees to protect sensitive data. In essence, GILAI needed a password manager capable of generating complex passwords easily.
“We create vaults for each customer or for each project, and to share the credentials with each other.” Gubser said. “We can log in with our personal business email and the credentials of the personal business email account.”
A match with Proton Pass
Like many security-conscious businesses, GILAI uses the Information Security and Data Protection (ISDP) concept to inform its cybersecurity policies, implementing data protection from the beginning of every new project. Searching for a new password manager, Islis found Proton Pass. With a Swiss base and adherence to strict Swiss data laws, it was a good fit.
"Proton has data centers in Switzerland. We are from Switzerland, so it was when we saw that it was a Swiss company and Swiss compliant," Islis said. "Passwords aren't sensitive information, but we store sensitive information including first names, last names, and addresses — we couldn't store our passwords on a data center in the USA, for example."
Proton is open source and prioritizes transparency and safety, inviting third-party security experts to conduct regular audits. GILAI can rely on Proton Pass to provide secure password management for all of its offices and help every team member stay compliant with both national and business data standards.
Protect your business with Proton Pass
With Proton Pass, your organization’s credentials benefit from the same battle-tested end-to-end encryption that has protected Proton Mail for over a decade.
Sharing data safely
Sharing is an important functionality for the teams within both GILAI and DIA. Being able to collaborate quickly and securely ensures that no time is lost and no corners are cut. This was one of the factors that made Proton Pass the right choice for GILAI, according to Islis:
"For both my colleagues at GILAI and some of the offices we work with, the principal feature that we use is sharing passwords and vaults between teams," Islis said. "An individual might have two or three vaults, and they share a vault with their team."
There are multiple, customizable options for sharing data within Proton Pass. Shared vaults allow teams to create shared spaces for passwords, credit cards, and notes. Invitee permissions to view, edit, and use admin functions can be granted on a case-by-case basis. Single items can be shared on a temporary or permanent basis as needed. Any team can now share sensitive data securely and easily, and they don't need a GILAI admin to configure this for them.
Success with Proton Pass
Since GILAI has deployed Proton Pass at DIA offices, the uptake has been very positive thanks to a user-friendly design. Six offices are successfully using Proton Pass, with reported satisfaction from each. There was no need for extensive documentation or demos to begin using the tool. The Proton Pass support center had enough resources, so Islis instead created a simple guide covering account setup, vaults, email aliases, and secure links.
The built-in password generator meets the team's needs when it comes to strong, varied passwords. Being able to store and autofill those passwords has cut down on password reset requests and support tickets, saving time and empowering DIA workers.
GILAI has found Proton Pass a valuable addition to its core services. The product is developing rapidly, and the team is able to provide feedback about features they'd like to see, knowing their opinion is valued. Islis recalled an event from when GILAI and Proton Pass were beginning to work together:
"We wanted to synchronize our users with our active directory, but when we started testing Proton Pass, this wasn't available yet," Islis said. "We told the team that it was essential for us, and then we were added to the beta for that feature along with with other clients. It was the customer relationship that made us go for Proton too."
If you’re interested in working with Proton Pass, contact our sales team to learn more.