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Rollout: Altiris' ESS

Posted by John H. Sawyer on October 5, 2006

Tags: Bluetooth,  ESS,  John H. Sawyer,  Senforce,  endpoint,  host-based,  location awareness,  Access and Authentication,  Altiris,  Antivirus,  Benchmarks,  Data Encryption,  Data Networking & Management,  Data Protection,  Enclosures,  Firewalls,  Hotspots,  Internet Authentication,  Java,  Mobile Security,  Other,  Remote Access Software,  Security Standards,  Security and Privacy,  Software,  Software and Web Development,  Technology,  VPNs ,  WLAN Security,  Wireless

Channel: Data Protection, Networking & Mgmt, Other, Wireless

The Upshot Altiris ESS protects systems and data from malware and hackers. ESS's unique location-awareness function automatically relaxes or tightens security policies as a laptop moves from corporate to public wireless networks. Data loss through missing or compromised laptops and malicious insiders are driving companies toward strong prevention and protection measures. User names and passwords aren't enough, and encryption can be difficult to centrally manage. ESS's location awareness works well at implementing protections based on predefined environments. Removable storage is monitored for reads/writes, and helps identify intentional data disclosure by employees. There are no features that identify malware, hackers or the data they may be after, but ESS is a great addition for Altiris users. Altiris Endpoint Security Solution www.altiris.com

With endpoint security solution, ALtiris has beefed up its management framework and provided protection for computers that access insecure wireless networks and removable storage devices. Its features protect mobile computers against network attacks and data loss.

ESS can lock down CD, DVD and removable storage devices. It also lets you define approved and prohibited wireless access points and change security policies, firewall configuration and endpoint integrity. ESS does an adequate job keeping up with competitors, including those from ISS and Symantec, thanks to its location-awareness, removable storage monitoring and wireless-configuration features.

ESS is the result of a partnership between Altiris and Senforce Technologies, which specializes in endpoint-security management. Altiris customers can install, configure and deploy ESS in less than 30 minutes. This package relies on the latest version of Altiris Notification Server (NS 6.0) with Service Pack 3 and the Altiris Agent on all endpoints where ESS will be deployed. We tested ESS within NS on Windows Server 2003 using Windows XP as the endpoints. Installation was simple and quick, with the entire process taking about 20 minutes.

Altiris Vs. The Competition Click to enlarge in another window

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