The TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team relies on the security of the Cato SASE Cloud platform. This enables the reliable and secure transmission of data worldwide. The insights gained on the race circuit can be applied to companies across all industries worldwide.
In any environment where data is generated or sent to the cloud, cybersecurity plays a particularly crucial role. This applies to businesses where employees work at different locations and branches, transferring data over the network. Traditional IT security solutions face challenges in being complex, cumbersome, costly to manage, and, most importantly, outdated.
Modern technologies like Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) represent the next generation of network security. Porsche Motorsport recognizes this and employs this technology for its Formula E Team. However, this approach is transferable to any organization where employees work remotely, multiple branches exist, and data flows to and from the cloud.
Why is SASE relevant for Formula E and other technology – and data-driven companies?
It’s quite simple: SASE converges network and security functions onto a global cloud platform. Instead of dealing with multiple manufacturers and products, a central platform is utilized, where all components are harmonized to work seamlessly together.
Additionally, this solution operates precisely where data is generated, network traffic flows, and cybercriminals target – in the cloud. SASE brings security inspection and policy information to the data, rather than routing the data to a data center, which increases latency. Cato can be self-managed, co-managed, or fully managed, which eases the burden on companies that no longer need to operate and maintain their hardware. The solution is tailored to support each company’s specific needs.
Simultaneously, a dedicated team of security experts takes care of the underlying SASE infrastructure. This ensures that protective measures are up-to-date. Furthermore, the team monitors the entire data traffic for potential threats. This makes it challenging for attackers to successfully breach Cato’s customers’ networks. At the same time, this approach relieves the IT department and reduces costs for security components.
The Formula E races on numerous tracks around the globe. From Mexico to Great Britain, the USA, South Africa, Indonesia, Monaco, Spain, Italy, and of course also in Germany. At each of the tracks, the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E team must quickly establish a stable, secure, and above all, fast data connection. The vehicle data must be provided to the engineers in the pit lane on-site, the cloud applications, and the operations room in Weissach in real-time to make strategically important decisions before and during the race. This results in approximately 400 GB of data being generated at each race weekend, which must be delivered swiftly, securely, and reliably to their respective recipients.
SASE = Security and Network Management
The SASE cloud platform not only serves the purpose of defending against attackers but also ensures the highest possible data transmission quality. The challenge lies in the fact that high-end data lines are not always available to the system. Instead, the data lines at various Formula E race circuits vary greatly in quality.
The Round Trip Time (RTT) for data between the race circuit and the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team headquarters is approximately 80 to 100 milliseconds. A maximum bandwidth of 50 Mbit/s is used, which is identical for all Formula E teams. This demonstrates that the SASE cloud platform is valuable not only for high-end connections but especially in situations with varying qualities.
For example, at the Diriyah race circuit in Saudi Arabia, the jitter was nearly zero to one millisecond, and packet loss during a session was around 2%. The different applications had to cope with bandwidth and cycle times. The Cato SASE Cloud then maintains data volume and transmission stability and performance even under challenging conditions. The racing team often doesn’t know how good the technical infrastructure will be at the next location but relies on having stable, secure, and fast data connections.
Furthermore, latency times vary from location to location. This is where another strength of the Cato SASE Cloud becomes evident. It minimizes latency with its managed global and private backbone, reducing delays and packet losses caused by inefficient internet routing. At the same time, the Cato SASE Cloud maximizes data volume through integrated bandwidth optimization.
Since the system’s implementation, it hardly matters to the racing team whether they are in India, Brazil, Germany, or anywhere else in the world. Of course, the performance of the Cato SASE Cloud depends on local conditions and distances between nodes, but it optimizes the situation wherever possible.
Setting up Service Quality, Prioritization, and Real-Time Connections
The IT team sets up the SASE access node at the race circuit, and the system connects to the Cato SASE Cloud, enabling secure, high-speed data transmission. Here, it is also possible to prioritize data traffic, which is particularly relevant in locations with low bandwidth. For instance, voice calls can remain clear and distinct even when large data volumes are transmitted over the same connection.
Ultimately, the SASE cloud platform helps ensure that the relevant team members receive the right data at optimal speeds. Real-time transmission, comprehensively protected by the platform, is also possible.
The most critical data for transmission includes video streams, timing data, and intercom voice communication. Speed and reliability of transmission play a crucial role here. Large amounts of data are collected at the race circuits, and with the Cato SASE Cloud, the data can be downloaded and processed as needed by the engineers. It’s important that the data is transmitted to the central operations center in Weissach as quickly and efficiently as possible during data processing.
Thanks to the SASE Cloud platform, the TAG Heuer Porsche Formula E Team can rely on consistently stable, fast, and secure internet data connections.