Symantec shows off next gen enterprise anti virus

Symantec has released a public beta of Endpoint Protection 11 enterprise grade anti virus suite that was previously known by its Hamlet codename.

Endpoint Protection bundles several of Symantec's existing security products as well as components from the Veritas, Whole Security and Sygate acquisitions.

The Endpoint Protection software will be comprised of anti-virus, anti-malware and firewall components. It also offers intrusion prevention technology that aims to thwart attacks by looking for abnormal network traffic and can prevent malware infections by by controlling and limiting devices such as USB memory keys.

"We're raising the bar on what we think baseline protection should be," Brian Foster, senior director of product management for Symantec told vnunet.com.

"But we also think that protecting the endpoint is not enough."

In an effort to expand protection beyond the end-user, Symantec said that the Endpoint Protection application would be accompanied by Network Access Control. The optional module lets administrators verify if a laptop is running anti-virus software and has been equipped with all the latest patches before it is allowed to connect to a network.

The new security products combine elements from both Sybase and Vertias. While some components, such as the Veritas rootkit detector, were used to fill gaps in Symantec's offerings, other components were used to replace existing Symantec code.

"We re-architected engines, we found ways to conserve memory, and we swapped out heavier components from Symantec with lighter components from Sybase," said Foster.

The end result was a major reduction in the memory footprint of the software. While current versions of Symantec's security software can take up roughly 65 M B, current beta versions of Endpoint Security take up less than 20 MB.

The two products have been developed under the Hamlet codename in a reference to the famous catch phrase in the Shakespearean play.

"When Microsoft entered the market, we decided to acquire Sybase and double down on Security," Foster explained.

"It is very much answering the question of Symantec: 'Do we want "to be or not to be" an enterprise security vendor.' This is very much a defining moment for us."

Endpoint Protection is scheduled for commercial release in September. Symantec has not yet disclosed pricing information but said that it will be priced similarly to previous products.