International security specialists, Beyond Security Ltd. have set up shop in sunny South Africa, with the clear goal of securing IP networks, from the wrath of the growing hordes of evil hackers.
"Beyond Security SA will focus primarily on offering managed security services specifically in the arena of Vulnerability Assessment" said Steven Chalom, director of Beyond Security South Africa.
"While there has been much comment from security companies and pundits telling organisations to beef up their security, many companies remain at a loss as to what they actually need to do to secure their IT infrastructure."
"It`s no longer just a question of hackers stealing information," explained Chalom "Nowadays, malicious intent is finding new avenues. Hackers are frequently driven by other sinister motives. Their aim is often to penetrate a network merely to utilise its bandwidth, and although no information is actually stolen, the impact on the targeted networks can be immense. This type of attack and the Denial of Service type attack (named for its ability to shut targeted systems down) are continuing to wreak havoc throughout the world`s computer networks at an ever increasing rate. In South Africa, alarmingly, the trend is much the same, and while the Internet brings the world to your desktop, it unfortunately also makes the hacker in another country half-way around the world, your next-door-neighbour. Any vulnerable system is an invitation."
`Automated Scanning` is a unique service that will be marketed by Beyond Security SA. It is a web-based automated vulnerability assessment tool that provides organisations with a picture of their vulnerability profile as well as a blueprint on how to comprehensively secure their networks, and as such, says Chalom; it`s a key first step in securing an organisation`s information systems.
The service includes a vulnerability scan, which currently checks for over 1100 known vulnerabilities and is constantly updated as new exploits are discovered. The confidential report identifies potential vulnerabilities, both product (like holes in software) and intelligence (which give hackers access to information that helps them break into systems). The report also outlines the risk levels associated with those vulnerabilities and offers advice on simple solutions to secure the vulnerabilities, without promoting any vendor specific products.
At a time when companies are demanding more than just product from their technology solution providers, Chalom believes that this latest offering provides an excellent opportunity for resellers to add real value for their customers.
"This represents a genuine value-added revenue opportunity for the channel as, in addition to offering the service, resellers can use the resulting vulnerability report as the basis for providing additional services and/or security products," says Chalom. "In the current market climate, this provides resellers with a business development strategy focused on security, which is a high growth market sector, with South African revenues estimated to grow from current figures of around R500 million to almost R1.4 billion by 2006."
Prior to the introduction of this new online automated vulnerability assessment service, Chalom says the process of vulnerability assessment has been prohibatively expensive, often costing end-users many thousands of rands. "Beyond Security`s online service, however, requires no hardware or software investment, and no additional resources. A scan can, therefore, be conducted at a fraction of the cost of previous methods." he explains.
Able to conduct scans on all IP based platforms and specifically Microsoft, UNIX and Novell platforms, Automated Scanning has been designed to cater for the smallest to the largest organisations. End-users can opt for once-off scans or, if a more comprehensive service is required, subscription packages are also available, which will further increase the cost-effectiveness of the service. Subscription customers also receive additional value-added services such as security alerts, and access to the latest security information and tools via Beyond Security Ltd`s security portal website, www.SecuriTeam.com.
Beyond Security South Africa will officially be launched in April 2002, and will continue to focus on establishing Service Provider (SP) channels as its chosen method of service distribution. Logical SP types include Internet Service Providers (ISP`s), IT consultancies, and Managed Security Service Providers (MSSP`s). More information can be requested at info@beyondsecurity.co.za
"Effectively managing one`s Information Security is an ongoing process" concluded Chalom. "As hackers constantly improve tools and methods, so the information security community must constantly upgrade its own solutions."
As an entity with a global presence, and a highly specialised resource pool, reaching 16 countries, and constantly researching and developing new checks and technologies to counter attacks, Beyond Security is uniquely placed to create real value in the South African context, hackers beware!
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