IBM is announcing that Deutsche Telekom will implement the AI-powered solution IBM Concert, enabling intelligent automation in patch management and the orchestration of security-related activities. Patches are a necessary part of software lifecycle management. They help systems stay secured, functional, and relevant in a fast-changing IT landscape.

Without patches, software would quickly become vulnerable, unstable, and obsolete. But handling patches is a challenge as well. IBM can help companies accelerate vulnerability protection in their IT systems while boosting operational efficiency.

IBM Concert helps companies to reduce operational costs and the effort required for patching vulnerabilities, increasing the speed of response and the efficiency for improving the security of all systems. One billion apps by 2028 According to an IDC study, there will be one billion additional applications by 2028 - an increase that will be driven by AI innovations. Even for minor changes and updates, complex coordination between app owners, development, security, and operations teams is necessary to ensure smooth operation for millions of customers and users. The large number of manual process steps to prepare, execute, and document the end-to-end patching process increases the risk of errors.

Deutsche Telekom turned to IBM for an approach that could scale faster and dramatically improve overall efficiency. The IBM Software Development Organization had developed a solution specifically for this purpose, IBM Concert, which IBM had initially tested on itself as "Client Zero," after facing a similar complexity challenge. IBM Concert provides Deutsche Telekom with intelligent resilience for complex IT operations, with a single source of truth for vulnerability management, patching, and reporting.

The solution brings together all relevant data and specializations, creating contextual information that enables end-to-end AI-powered automation. The fully automated patching process for operating systems has been designed to reduce patching time from 90 minutes to a maximum of 20 minutes per instance. This dramatic time savings gives IT teams new freedom for strategic tasks, innovations, and optimizations.

During the successful pilot implementation of IBM Concert, Deutsche Telekom was able to achieve a 10x reduction in a key metric "Median Time To Patch," going from 80 hours per critical vulnerabilities to eight hours. This acceleration of the rollout of patches increases IT security and also improves business risk and compliance, enabling Deutsche Telekom to manage risks for its IT operations much more effectively.