It's important to have a proactive approach to stop malware before it infects an IT system, rather than simply having a reactive approach to security threats.
This is according to Rajat Sahu, head of marketing for MicroWorld Software, a security software solutions developer based in India.
Sahu was in SA last week to discuss business strategies with the company's local partners. Some of MicroWorld's partners include Microsoft, Intel, IBM, CheckPoint, Citrix, Suse Linux and Red Hat.
This year, MicroWorld upgraded and rolled out its flagship security product, eScan version 10, as well as Mailscan 6.1, in a global initiative to gain market share from other security giants.
Sahu explains that enterprises, specifically small-to-medium enterprises, do not take security seriously enough, especially in the economic slowdown where budgets are being cut. He says in the same way someone wouldn't leave their front door open, businesses should safeguard their IT security systems.
“Enterprises train their IT staff but in the same segment, they do not know how to protect themselves from internal as well as external threats. We are currently seeing more than 7 000 new viruses coming up every week,” notes Sahu.
The eScan solution provides real-time virus protection using MicroWorld's winsock layer technology, which blocks security threats at the Windows socket layer and scans for restricted content in e-mails, removes malicious attachments, and filters Web sites. The Winsock layer acts as an interface between the computer system and the Internet. Some of eScan's other features include USB scanning, anti-virus, anti-phishing, anti-spyware, anti-spam and firewall.
Sahu says: “We have upgraded the eScan software so it's much faster and less bandwidth-intensive. Any content coming into your laptop or PC is scanned and malicious content is stopped before it reaches the system.”
Sahu adds that MicroWorld is looking to market its products, the eScan solution in particular, to the South African consumer, SME, and larger enterprise market.
“SA is a key market for us in Africa because it's a fast-emerging market. We have been present for 16 years now and we want to increase our focus on the South African SME segment. Our other main focus is to consolidate the channel and to drive our channel-oriented partner programme.”
According to Sahu, the next step for MicroWorld is developing security solutions for mobile devices such as smartphones to target mobile malware, as cellphone banking becomes more prevalent.
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