Features

This product concentrates on hard disk data encryption. However , it does include a VPN client integration for IPCrytor VPN gateways, which is a remote access solution. Encryption may be in relation to your own local hard drive, or a specific directory or folder on the corporate LAN.

First, allow us to congratulate Datakey on a most comprehensive and clearly written set of user guides. This is an important factor for many users and yet so often overlooked in contemporary products. For those as yet unfamiliar with smartcards and tokens, this can be very helpful and save them a lot of time as they progress along their own particular learning curve.

In this Group Test we have looked at a number of solutions, all designed to manage your critical policy management and to ensure corporate policy is adhered to across even the largest networks.

This particular solution is for Windows 2000 users only; it sets, manages and backs up policies across your whole network without the need for agents. Designed specifically to replace the built-in utilities that are provided with Windows 2000 networks, it also allows the management of multiple domains in unison.

We've looked at PoliVec Builder in the past, a policy development tool from the same stable. Part of the PoliVec suite, PoliVec Enforcer integrates seamlessly with its policy development tool counterpart to keep the enterprise secure.

Therefore, policy can be locked down to stop system changes and policy non-compliance from weakening the protected network infrastructure. Extensive reporting enables a precise picture of your network and real-time monitoring ensures that notification of problems can be dealt with in a timely fashion.

Policy enforcement is only as good as your management system allows, so a serious vulnerability could go unnoticed without prior knowledge of the problem.

Security Expressions allows deployment using no-agent technology to ensure that, once installed on either Windows NT or 2000 systems, the administrator can add machines within a group, that are required to adhere to the policies that pertain to that group.

Sygate Technologies says that its policy enforcement ensures remote connections over a VPN are not exposed to hijacking of data. It ensures remote authentication is only made if the user conforms to the policy set in force. This makes a lot of sense.

What Sygate Secure Enterprise provides is the ability to maintain certain rules, even for remote users. These include whether their firewall is current and configured correctly, if the remote user's anti-virus is up to corporate specifications and, equally important, up to date. These are just a few example of areas where compliance may be required.

The basis of any policy management tool is the ability to manage its users and to recognize potential problem areas. Some do this without agents and others prefer to manage policy enforcement with agents residing on both workstations and servers. This is the case for Symantec Enterprise Security Manager, which uses the agents as its means of communication between its networked machines, enabling timely updates and compliance reports.

Symantec Enterprise Security Manager has already established itself in the policy management solutions market. This particular solution ensures that policies are intrinsically complied with throughout the organization, as well as maintaining system security through recognizing changes that could affect the security of the network.

Using control information files (CIF) the product can be managed from a central console, but in a large organization you may require more than one. Agents provide the means for the information to be collected across a distributed network to ensure updates are accomplished at regular intervals. Changes can be identified and the appropriate action taken, while logs and reports may be generated for further analysis.

Recently acquired by NetIQ, VigilEnt Policy Center provides a policy management tool that ensures users are aware of their responsibilities while providing solid policy control across the company network.

This is a corporate-level security solution and requires a user database to allow you to import users so that user groups can be established. The policies can then be set for these groups, with users being required to answer questions to establish understanding and compliance. Logs are kept to view user input and also to define problem areas. This performance-related system means that users know how to use company data and they learn what is required of them, while the administrator can see statistics and reports. Users not complying can be identified and an email can be sent to them to remind them of its significance. This ensures that not only do your employees comply with your policies, but your company can prove compliance with the regulators and specifically with ISO 17799.

You can stipulate certain user rights to allow for policies to be reviewed prior to publication and distribution. But of course you may use pre-written policies, amend them or create your own, as required by your own particular corporate needs.

Each enterprise will look long and hard at how they implement their corporate security policy. While many administrators look to implement an enterprise-wide solution, some may look to deliver specific policy management features for areas that their particular enterprise rates as high risk.

This means that in order to deliver policy management across all electronic communication a specific policy solution will be required that specializes in this particular function.

There are now many policy management tools for the control of email usage, and that need arises from the growing requirements that increasing legislation has put on companies. Policy Patrol is one such solution, ensuring that certain criteria are being met, and reducing the risk to the enterprise by monitoring communications and filtering out according to a rule set.

There are pre-set policies that allow the new installation to be put in place quickly and effectively while new policies are written.

One of the biggest problems with internet security is that you can end up blocking sites which employees may have a perfectly valid reason for visiting - 'breast' blocking cancer sites, for example.

If you are looking for a little more than simple content filtering, it is worth taking a look at WebWasher. Aimed at the medium to large business, it provides extensive content filtering and a number of other valuable features.

Unlike the other products in this Group Test Web Inspector is neither system policy management or email policy management, but in fact an internet compliance tool that uses policy to set its users' boundaries. Suitable as a single installation for the smaller enterprise, this solution easily scales up to a distributed deployment over a large network.

Policy starts with access control, ensuring that users only have the rights assigned by the administrator in line with your corporate policy. Whether you choose to assign the same rights across the network or drill down your policy into user groups, sites, or individual users or workstations, is your choice. Policies can be created to suit your needs and ensure that only the web pages that your company deems necessary are viewed within work hours, allowing for the organization to permit safe surfing on non-business sites at stipulated times.

Possibly one of the most addictive aspects of the internet is instant messaging. Even if you prevent your employees from installing MSN Messenger, AIM or Yahoo, there are countless web sites that offer proprietary messaging systems that can be overlooked by some security applications.

Cobion's OrangeBox Web is a very similar product to DynaComm i:filter. Designed to integrate with a proxy server (for example, Microsoft ISA on Windows 2000/XP), it is also happy to sit on a number of popular Linux and Unix platforms. It can also be used as a proxy server in its own right if you have a small or medium-sized intranet network.

DynaComm's i:series offers a range of security solutions: DynaComm i:filter is designed to monitor and protect you from internet traffic. Covering HTTP, HTTPS, FTP and NNTP traffic, it uses a database of URLs and a rules-based strategy to enforce your internet policy.

Another policy enforcement product, but with some added features that really give it some teeth, is iomart's NetIntelligence. As well as monitoring URL requests, it also looks at the network as a whole (hardware, software and all files) and can instantly detect whether any unauthorized changes have been made, or whether any prohibited content is suddenly present.

N2H2 is generally considered to be one of the best content/URL filtering products on the market, and looking at in this group test, it is easy to see why.

NetIQ MailMarshal was the sleeper hit of the recent email security Group Test. Can this New Zealand-based software development center make it two in a row with its WebMarshal browser control? The answer is a resounding yes.

Unique in this test, the iPrism is actually an appliance. Although these tend to be more expensive than software-only products, they usually have the advantage of a fairly solid configuration since they are factory-build.