Building Societies
Building societies have long stood apart in the UK financial services sector, built on trust, mutual responsibility, and a commitment to serving local communities. But as operations evolve to include flexible working, satellite branches, and third-party service providers, cyber risks are growing.
In particular, many building societies are now exposed at the uncontrolled network edge: the point where staff connect into systems from home, shared offices, or branches outside direct IT oversight.
Loxada helps protect these connections, providing a simple, centrally managed way to secure remote access, reduce cyber risk, and support compliance with FCA and PRA expectations.
Cyber Threats Are Increasing and Evolving
The risk isn’t theoretical. Cybercriminals are increasingly targeting the network edge, especially routers and devices used in homes or small offices. Recent developments include:
- Hacking-as-a-Service (HaaS) platforms that let unskilled users launch sophisticated attacks
- AI-assisted toolkits that reduce the learning curve for exploitation
- Attackers scanning the internet for vulnerable routers or unpatched firmware
- Threat actors using compromised routers to move laterally into trusted systems
Even when VPNs or endpoint protection are in place, they don’t defend against lateral threats from other devices on the same network, or risks introduced by outdated or misconfigured routers.
Understanding the Uncontrolled Network Edge
The uncontrolled network edge refers to any location where a staff member connects to systems from outside the core IT environment. For building societies, this increasingly includes:
- Branches using legacy networking equipment
- Staff working from home on personal broadband
- Temporary or mobile setups for community outreach
- Partner or contractor offices not governed by your internal security policies
In each case, the endpoint may be secure, but the network itself is unknown, untrusted, and potentially exposed. Without clear visibility or central control, these connections are difficult to protect using traditional tools.
Regulatory Expectations Are Rising
UK regulators are responding to these risks. The FCA, PRA and guidance from the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) all emphasise the need for:
- Robust controls around remote access
- Visibility over systems and assets used to access sensitive data
- Demonstrable patching and firmware integrity
- Support for Zero Trust models and network segmentation
The Digital Operational Resilience Act (DORA) and NIS2 Directive, though EU-led, set further expectations for operational resilience that UK firms may choose to align with as a matter of best practice.
Loxada: Secure Remote Access, Simplified
Loxada provides a secure, centrally managed router that creates a trusted connection point, even in environments you don’t directly manage.
Each device comes with Loxada’s proprietary secure firmware, replacing consumer-grade software with a hardened, locked-down build which:
- Automatically updates with the latest patches
- Blocks malicious traffic and known threat domains
- Establishes a dedicated, encrypted VPN tunnel back to your trusted network
- Creates a separate network for work devices, isolated from other local traffic
Even if plugged into an untrusted network, the Loxada device ensures all traffic flows through a clean, secure path, removing assumptions and reducing your attack surface.
Designed for Ease of Use and Rapid Deployment
Loxada is engineered for organisations that don’t want to deploy or support complex infrastructure across dozens of locations. Key benefits include:
- Plug-and-play simplicity, no local configuration required
- Zero-touch updates, firmware patches, and policy changes are applied automatically
- Seamless integration complements existing remote access tools, VPNs, and endpoint security software
- Scalable, works just as well for 5 users as for 500
Devices are centrally managed and monitored through the Loxada portal, providing your IT team or outsourced provider with full visibility and control.
Helps Support Regulatory Compliance
Loxada can assist societies in meeting obligations under:
- FCA and PRA expectations for cyber resilience and third-party risk
- NCSC guidance on securing edge devices and remote access
- Internal audits for firmware integrity and patch management
- DORA-aligned principles on securing digital operational infrastructure
Loxada streamlines compliance efforts, enabling robust access control, patch management, and a proactive security stance across all devices and systems that are used to access data.
Why Building Societies Choose Loxada
Protect Member Trust at Every Connection Point. As societies embrace flexible working and digital transformation, securing every connection becomes essential, not just those inside your core systems.`
Loxada helps you regain control of the network edge with a simple and effective solution designed for today’s hybrid landscape.
- Helps protect member data wherever staff work from
- Reduces risk at the edge without adding user burden
- Deploys rapidly with no need for specialist installation
- Supports your compliance with FCA, PRA and NCSC expectations
- Aligns with NIS2 and DORA principles for resilient financial infrastructure
