For companies looking to beef up network protection without having to buy the latest expensive software – or hiring extra IT staff to administer it – Ottawa’s Nuvo Network Management Inc. has unveiled a new suite of remote security management services.
Delivered from Nuvo’s Network Operations Centre (NOC), the rNMX 6000 package includes network security auditing and assessment, firewall management, and intrusion detection services. Although Nuvo has specialized in designing one-off security solutions since it was founded six years ago, the new package focuses on delivering services remotely, said David Pearson, the company’s director of product management.
“Under remote firewall management we’ve launched several products with different levels of service depending on the ‘criticality’ of the customer’s firewall itself, and in-house expertise. Some customers already have one or two security people on staff, but they don’t necessarily have full 7×24 coverage, so that’s where our lower-end packages can enhance existing security staff. Or we can go up into our higher-end packages where we essentially take ownership – not legal or financial ownership, but we take care of the customer’s firewall and network security,” Pearson said.
The customers still own their firewall software, Pearson added, but since the services are delivered remotely, customers also benefit from the heavy-duty equipment, software and staff in Nuvo’s Ottawa NOC.
These services are mainly focused at large customers of 5,000 people and above, and they are not distance-sensitive, said Doug Carwardine, Nuvo’s vice-president of business development.
“We’re managing networks around the world today – we’ve got over 80 networks under contract today, including 300-plus branches of Laurentian Bank right across the country, and the traders’ component of CIBC World Markets in 50-odd countries,” Carwardine said.
Network management in general is a burgeoning market that offers tremendous opportunities, especially as companies scramble to tighten security after recent viruses and other threats, said Terry Bracca, the Sterling, Va.-based director of network management for research firm Current Analysis.
“The two really common security threats – and they both tend to focus on the firewall – are accidental, like an employee with no criminal intent, and malicious, typically coming form outside. So any service solution needs a combination of rules and probes to address both attacks, and staff who – through either through good or bad intentions – are trying to do something the organization doesn’t want them to do like access an external Web site, send a file to a friend or e-mailing confidential information to home address,” Bracca said.
Nuvo’s suite also includes real-time analysis and reporting of network security trends through webCenter, a secure Web portal that assists customers in managing firewall performance levels and the risks of emerging vulnerabilities, the company said.
Although some consultation is required to implement some of the more sophisticated services, Carwardine said that the basic firewall management services have been designed “so customers have a pretty easy time of picking the package that’s suitable for them and making a decision and going forward.”s
“The nice thing about a package also is that its defined boundaries make it a lot easier for the customer to feel comfortable with the whole concept of out-tasking security, it’s not a one-off scenario,” he said.
Nuvo’s rNMX Secure 6000 suite is available immediately. Pricing is based on network size, complexity and service level agreement (SLA) requirements.