ADVA Optical Networking has launched an encrypted network technology that it claims than run at 100Gbps, in a bid to provide a secure but rapid means of transport for big data.

The new 100G Metro system uses built-in encryption and comes pre-integrated with the ADVA FSP 3000 switch which, claimed the vendor, makes it capable of achieving high speeds.

The vendor claims the systems have already been pioneered successfully by a select group of enterprises and service providers.

The new product is based on the 4x28G technology of the original ADVA 100G Metro.

Demand for the system has been created by a number of high profile data breaches, according to ADVA.

The security of data has never been so important and its integrity never so public, according to Uli Schlegel, ADVA’S director of data center business development.

“In the wake of Heartbleed and other data security scares, businesses are only too aware of how vulnerable their mission-critical data is,” Schlegel said.

While data security is now of paramount importance, data volumes have also risen dramatically, he said.

This has created a new market for communications hardware.

“Something had to be purpose built. That’s why this is the only product on the market capable of securely transporting big data,” Schlegel said.

The system was built on advanced encryption standards (AES) with a key size of 256 bits.

Its built-in encryption features a Diffie Hellmann dynamic key exchange with over 60 exchanges per hour.

Encryption takes place at the lowest network layers and works with any protocol, such as Fibre Channel, InfiniBand or Ethernet.

The kit supports a variety of data rates from 5Gbps, through 10 and 40 Gbps up to 100Gbps. Optical transport network (OTN) framing is used in order to provide widespread compatibility during the encryption and decryption phases.

The system also promises less than 150 nanoseconds latency with the transport link.

“Cost, space and power consumption have long been defining factors for data center connectivity. Now a fourth one has joined the list of top criteria - security,” said Christoph Glingener, CTO at ADVA Optical Networking.