group

This software network-based IDS product requires a dedicated machine running Solaris 8 on either Sun SPARC or Intel hardware. The hardware specification depends on the amount of traffic to be monitored, and gigabit monitoring interfaces are supported. We were supplied with a pre-installed system running on a Dell PowerEdge rack-mounted server - however, customers would have to provide their own hardware; prices quoted are for software only.

Another USB token approach, this time from Feitian Technologies, a company based in Beijing, China. The ePass2000 product comes attractively packaged with the software, printed user's guide, a USB token (in this case the ePass2000 with 1024-bit key functionality), overview brochures and even a mouse mat. This may give an impression of an off-the-shelf consumer oriented product, but the ePass offering is actually quite comprehensive.

The Aladdin eToken is a small, lightweight, attractive USB device, about the size of a physical key, which can generate and store user credentials such as private keys, passwords and digital certificates within its own protected chip environment.

RSA is usually associated with token solutions, providing dynamic one-time password facilities plugged into back end authentication servers like RSA's ACE/ Server. But there are times when a token is not ideal: you have lease costs to consider, the server-side requirements are relatively high and inexperienced users can find one-time passwords tricky to handle.

The SafeWord PremierAccess product immediately impresses as a solution that has been well considered from the outset. Developed around the dynamic password concept, it may nevertheless support smartcards and other tokens, and even biometrics. These methodologies may be mixed and matched depending upon the needs of the enterprise.

Entercept falls into the category of an intrusion prevention system (IPS). In common with traditional host-based IDS, Entercept resides on the host itself, but it works at a much lower level than a normal HIDS system.

This solution provides a network-based IDS, real-time session monitoring and internet/email content blocking. eTrust Intrusion Detection can be installed in standalone mode, or it can be distributed on separate machines. The intrusion detection program installs as a service under Windows NT/2000. As usual, the monitoring interface is a NIC in promiscuous mode, and therefore the presence of the IDS is concealed from the attacker.

This solution is supplied as software, desktop or rack-mounted. Each network sensor is a separate appliance, handing high-availability, high-security 10/100 or gigabit monitored segments.Running on a hardened OS, based on Red Hat Linux, in a small installation it can be managed using a web-based interface, software or optionally as an appliance.

ActivCard Gold provides the expected functionality for securing the desktop, remote network access and access to web services, via digital signatures stored upon a smartcard. Appropriate software utilities are provided to manage these functions. However, the ActivCard approach goes one stage further by adding biometrics technology to the mix.

Authenex Strong Authentication System (ASAS) is described as a network security application that provides strong (two-factor) authentication for remote, VPN and web access. This would appear to sum things up quite well and Authenex provides a variety of software tools to support this goal.

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.

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.

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.

At the heavy duty end of the market, SSH Secure Shell for Windows Server offers enough security for even the most paranoid network administrator. Already recognized as one of the most popular applications for creating secure sessions in Unix, it is now available for Windows, replacing such protocols as Telnet or FTP with a hardened connectivity solution for those businesses that require more than usual security for data transfer.

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.