Security

Security

There's a solution to meet every threat

Undoubtedly, SMBs are ranked as the most vulnerable segment in terms of security. It is generally observed that security in small business is limited to the deployment of an anti-virus solution and they lack proper security management, whereas medium enterprises are in a somewhat better position regarding the management of security and have taken a few measures in that direction; however they still have a lot of room for improvement in terms of implementation and management.

Open networks, lack of security policies, outdated software and lack of management are the reasons for security breaches within any small or mid-sized organisation. Management is the part of organisational choice and needs but as far as software and hardware are concerned, the market is full of options. There are several software companies providing anti-virus solutions and so is the case with all other security software. Hardware availability for firewall and VPN devices also ranges from thousands to lakhs depending upon the vendor and a company’s needs.

Data is the most important aspect of any organisation coming at the top of the priority list for an IT manager. Data is the lifeblood of a business. It may be in the form of e-mail, office documents, and ERP data and so on. An attack on the systems containing this data or a virus in your e-mail service can cause immense damage, both to your business and the organisation’s image. Direct breach of security in order to steal data can be harmful. Data backup works as one way to secure data by making a copy of it but along with that one needs to equip the organisation with related software and hardware such as anti-virus, anti-spam, firewalls, VPN and UTM.

UTM vs. standalone solutions

UTM (Unified Threat Management) comes as a complete solution for most security concerns by covering most of the aspects in a single solution. It can perform operations such as content filtering, spam filtering, intrusion detection and anti-virus which were traditionally handled by multiple systems. Small organisations have still not moved in to the UTM way and even the medium business sector is far from the large scale implementation of such products.

Usually, each of the services provided by UTM is handled by individual solutions. The fear of hackers is the primary reason for a firewall and sufficient to protect most networks. To safeguard from virus attack organisations have installed anti-virus gateways. For Internet security they have Web content filtering, and for stopping unwanted e-mail, spam filtering is performed. All these different systems can become a tangled web and prove costly to manage.

A UTM appliance, on the other hand, performs all of these functions on its own. This makes an IT manager’s job far easier and can secure an organisation in much better way. Though UTM may seem expensive it comes at a much cheaper price than buying individual systems. In order to provide unified threat management, the appliance must include all the important security elements such as firewall, anti-virus, anti-spam, URL filter and IDS/IPS. If UTM is able to provide these functionalities a small and medium sized businesses can be secured economically.

VPN

Infrequently used by SMBs, VPN (Virtual Private Network) is a communication network which is used by organisations to communicate privately over the public network. This can serve as a mode of security for official communications for companies which do not have private networks. Using this service, one can securely communicate over Internet on top of standard protocols or over the network of the service provider. A VPN can send data such as voice, video, documents or a combination of them across secured and encrypted private channel between two entities.

ANTI-VIRUS

CA Integrated Threat Management   CA Integrated Threat Management r8 unifies new versions of CA PestPatrol Anti-Spyware Corporate Edition and CA Antivirus through a centralised web-based console that enables administrators to find and resolve threats from anywhere on the network. It automatically alerts security technicians as soon as any new threat is detected in their environment. Seventy-five detailed, graphical reports — including a “Top 10” virus and spyware list — enable security teams to quickly isolate problems and respond to emerging changes in threat activity. With CA Integrated Threat Management r8, administrators can easily and automatically update protection on systems with any necessary version updates, patches, virus signatures and files across the enterprise - prioritizing updates according to business needs. Price: Rs. 1,260 (per user, minimum five users) Contact: Kaustubh Patki Telephone: 022 66413800 E-mail: kaustubh.patki@ca.com Website: ca.com/in

MicroWorld’s eScan Workstation Server Suite MicroWorld’s eScan Workstation Server Suite features MWL Technology, Central Management Console, anti-virus, anti-spyware and adware remover, anti-spam e-mail and attachment filtering, parental control, privacy control (WebWasher), block audio, video and images, popup advertisement blocker and a NetBIOS Firewall. Price: Rs. 10,750 for five users Contact: Sindhu Nelson Telephone: 022 28265701 E-mail: sindhu@mwti.net Website: msspl.co.in

Netcore’s Emergic CleanMail (Multi Layerd Anti Spam, Triple Layered Anti Virus) This managed service features triple-level virus scanning, multi-layered anti-spam that stops 90-95 percent of spam, a spam analysis engine with auto-updates and auto-learning and personal whitelists and blacklists allow/block e-mail from specific IDs/domains. Other features include real-time blackhole lists capture data from global spam servers to block spam, Content filtering and reports on e-mail trends, viruses detected, spam volumes, policy violations. The Managed Security Service does not require any client side installation and configuration. Price: Rs 750 per user/year Contact: Kalpit Jain Telephone: 9820032324 E-mail: kalpit@netcore.co.in Website: netcore.co.in or cleanmail.in

SonicWALL Email Security 300 (for 100 licensed users) This appliance brings together anti-spam, anti-phishing and anti-virus. It also includes policy management, content filtering, inbound and outbound e-mail management, time-zero technology, DHA, DoS and Zombie protection and a framework for regulatory compliance. Price: Rs 1,62,792 plus taxes as applicable Contact: Seema Ayachit Telephone: 080 22275308 E-mail: sayachit@sonicwall.com Website: sonicwall.com

Symantec Client Security   The software automatically removes viruses and spyware while stopping hackers and online intrusions. It offers collaborative security elements including a client firewall, intrusion protection, and anti-virus/anti-spyware. It scans POP3 e-mail messages and attachments, protects itself against malicious code that tries to disable antivirus software, repairs changes made by viruses and spyware. It also offers centralised installation, configuration, management, and reporting and permits administrators to customise spyware/adware policies. LiveUpdate automatically downloads new virus definitions (an active maintenance agreement is required). Price: License plus one year maintenance for Rs 2,035 per user. *prices are for licenses that fall in band D (100-249).  Contact: Vishal Sinha E-mail: vishal_sinha@symantec.com Website: symantec.com

Trend Micro CSM With Trend Micro’s Client Server Messaging, you can protect your Windows-based environment 24x7 against multiple Internet threats—including spam, spyware, viruses, phishing and inappropriate content. The solution safeguards PCs, notebooks and servers, including Microsoft Exchange servers. Trend Micro Client Server Messaging Security for SMBs is a security solution that provides your business with automatic threat detection and removal, offering protection against increasingly sophisticated threats to protect your network and employee productivity. Price starts from Rs. 2,970 per user Contact: V Parsuraman Telephone: 011 42699000 E-mail: sales.in@trendmicro.com Website: trendmicro.com

Sophos Security Suite The suite integrates anti-virus, firewall and anti-spam protection in one easy-to-use software package for small businesses. Designed for non-technical users, it protects Windows and Mac desktops, laptops, file servers and Exchange email servers, stopping viruses, spyware, adware, hackers and spam. Small, fast updates are completely automatic, and with unlimited 24/7 support. Price: Rs 2,000 per user per year for 50 users and above Contact: Vinod Kumar Telephone: 022 67911040 E-mail: info@satcominfotech.com Website: sophos.com

FIREWALL

Cisco 1811 Integrated Services Router The Cisco 1811 Integrated Services Router provides secure broadband access with concurrent services for branch and small offices, integrated ISDN basic rate interface (BRI), analog modem, or Ethernet backup port for redundant WAN links and load balancing. It offers LAN Switching with optional inline POE and secure wireless LAN for simultaneous 802.11a and 802.11b/g operation with use of multiple antennas. The advances security includes Stateful Inspection Firewall, IP Security (IPSec) VPNs (Triple Data Encryption Standard [3DES] or Advanced Encryption Standard [AES]), Dynamic Multipoint VPN (DMVPN) and Easy VPN, Intrusion Prevention System (IPS), anti-virus support through Network Admission Control (NAC) and enforcement of secure access policies. Approximate base Price: Rs. 60,000 Contact: Ravi Khanchandani Telephone: 022 40434096 E-mail: rkhancha@cisco.com Website: cisco.com

D-Link’s DFL-210 D-Link’s DFL-210 features integrated Firewall/VPN Appliance, proactive network security, increase network efficiency and utilisation, multiple user-configurable Ethernet/Gigabit interfaces, powerful Firewall and VPN data encryption performance along with unrestricted user support. Price: Rs. 16,500 plus taxes Contact: Sanjay Sehgal Telephone: 022 30616666 E-mail: sales@dlink.co.in Website: dlink.co.in

SecureSynergy’s Firewall Audit Service Through the Firewall Auditing Service, SecureSynergy carries out a detailed review of the firewall configuration, either on-site or remotely, for secure practices, optimal organisation of rules, etc. The consultants analyse and rectify configurations, simplify the organisation’s rule-sets and related objects, and fine-tune the performance of the firewall and set appropriate operating system parameters. They also review random samples of log-files for suspicious activity. As a result of a firewall audit, an organisation obtains a firewall that is optimised for security and performance. A summary of findings that includes remedial needs and suggestions for improvement of security and management is also provided. A detailed firewall audit provides a certain level of comfort that all possible security and continuity risks are being adequately addressed and also ensures that an adequate level of network integrity and security is achieved and maintained. Price: Starting from Rs. 32,000 per Firewall Contact: Anita Kukreja Telephone: 022 28251241 E-mail: info@securesynergy.com Website: securesynergy.com

SSL - VPN

Aventail EX-750 The EX-750 is a full-featured, clientless SSL VPN appliance tailored to companies or departments with as many as 25 concurrent users. It offers secure access from any location across any network and firewall, clientless access to Web, client/server, and legacy applications, as well as file shares. It provides native access to Windows Terminal Services and Citrix. Granular access control and elimination of direct network connections ensure maximum security. It provides cross-platform data protection at untrusted machines such as kiosks with Aventail Secure Desktop and Aventail Cache Control along with simple, centralised policy management and enforcement through the Aventail Management Console (AMC). Price: Rs.99,000 plus taxes for EX-750 appliance with 10 users. Contact: Ajay Kumar Telephone: 080 41141391 E-mail: akumar@aventail.com Website: aventail.com

Nortel VPN ROUTER 200 SERIES Available in two models, the VPN Router 221 and VPN Router 251, this series is designed for telecommuters and small offices/home offices with VPN, stateful firewall, URL/content filtering and optional integrated ADSL in a compact easy-to-manage platform. They offer advanced IPsec capabilities with up to five VPN tunnel capacity addresses site-to-site VPN needs of small offices and telecommuters, full stateful inspection firewall with up to 50 rules, denial of service protection, logging, and e-mail alerts prevent unwanted network intrusions, content/URL filtering blocks java applets, cookies and Web proxies so that network administrators can tailor remote site access policies to be consistent with rest of the enterprise. Other features include integrated four port 10/100 Ethernet switch allows direct connection of user PCs and LAN devices without the need for a separate Ethernet switch or hub and integrated ADSL option conforming to international standards allows global deployments. Price: 20,000 onwards Contact: Anto Deepak Dhanshekeran, Telephone: 9870289468 E-mail: anto@nortel.com Website: nortel.com

Linksys WRV200 Linksys WRV200 is a Wireless-G VPN Router with RangeBooster Secure, smart wireless networking for growing Businesses. It features RangeBooster (MIMO) technology for dramatically increased range SPI Firewall, Encryption, and VPN support makes your network secure, multiple BSSIDs and VLANs provide separate secure networks and enhanced QoS for both Wireless and wired provide improved quality voice/video. Price: Rs. 4,650 (taxes and octroi duties extra) Contact: Raj P Telephone: 9382821054  E-mail: raj.p@redington.co.in Website: linksys.com

SSL VPN 2000 SonicWALL SSL VPN 2000 provides integration behind virtually any firewall and facilitates Unrestricted Concurrent User Tunnels. It gives Clientless Wired and Wireless Connectivity and NetExtender Technology. It ensures that Granular Policy Configuration Controls.  SonicWALL SSL VPN Personalised Portal and Layered Security in a SonicWALL Environment.  Price: Rs. 1,70,748 plus taxes as applicable Contact: Seema Ayachit Telephone: 080 22275308 E-mail: sayachit@sonicwall.com Website: sonicwall.com