Security companies announcing products this spring underscored the growing interest in so-called “end point” security products that protect corporate networks from infections introduced by mobile or remote employees.
Symantec Corp., Configuresoft Inc. and StillSecure have new products or product updates to secure mobile computers and enforce security policies on remote machines that are trying to connect to corporate networks. These vendors are just the latest to offer a technology fix for companies plagued by worms and viruses that jump from mobile computers and home offices onto corporate networks.
Client security is “all the rage” among enterprises that are looking for ways to protect their corporate networks from workers on laptops and home computers who connect to office networks over broadband Internet connections, said Eric Ogren, senior analyst at The Yankee Group.
“Enterprises should really be taking a look at this technology to…protect themselves and make sure that those (remote) machines are up to date and redirect them to signatures or get patched if need be,” he said.
In other Symantec news, the company in May announced Symantec Enterprise Firewall 8.0 for the Windows and Solaris platforms. Symantec Enterprise Firewall 8.0 is described as providing proactive, enterprise-class network and application-level protection designed to protect against various types of malicious threats, including today’s blended Internet threats such as Blaster, Slammer and Sobig.
Also in May, Symantec announced it has signed an agreement to acquire Brightmail in a cash transaction valued at approximately $370 million, calling Brightmail’s anti-spam technology a key complement to Symantec’s array of gateway security solutions. The acquisition, conditioned upon customary regulatory approval, is expected to close by early July.
Another May announcement was that intrusion prevention solutions provider Network Associates, Inc. joined the Trusted Computing Group (TCG), an open industry standards organization whose specifications help vendors build products that let users protect critical data and information. As part of the collaboration, Network Associates will help develop the Trusted Network Connect open specification, which will enable network administrators to enforce security policies on systems before they connect to multi-vendor networks. Network Associates reports that the specification complements TCG’s efforts to provide building blocks to help secure critical data and information across a variety of platforms. The Trusted Network Connect specification is expected to be available later this year.
Network Associates also introduced in May the Appera Application Manager 1.0 through its Sniffer Technologies division. The software introduction means Sniffer Technologies now provides both network and applications managers with the ability to help manage the application lifecycle from pre-applications deployment testing all the way through post-application deployment troubleshooting.
In addition to helping customers improve the availability and performance of their applications and network, Appera Application Manager is said to also help IT staff more efficiently operate their networks and applications, thus reducing or deferring capital expenditures. The company says the software also provides insight into bandwidth consumed by non-business applications and offers statistics that help gauge application efficiency and chattiness and maintain VLAN integrity.
— with file from Paul Roberts, IDG News Service
