Via a recorded message, at the McAfee summit, in Sandton this morning, Intel CEO Paul Otellini gave assurances that security solutions provider McAfee would continue to run as a separate entity, following its recent acquisition by the computing giant.
“We are highly committed to the success of McAfee,” he said. “McAfee will not be moving away from what it does currently. There will be a maintained focus on current products and services.”
He also confirmed Intel's acquisition of McAfee is a strategic step to incorporate security in the company's hardware.
“Cyber crooks are starting to install malware below the operating system, directly at a silicon level,” added McAfee EMEA president Gert-Jan Schenk. “This is why the partnership with Intel is critical.”
He explained that the world is entering a new era in computer platforms, where there are billions of connected devices, connecting with the Internet and with each other. As more people spend more time online, security threats are likewise increasing.
Schenk said McAfee has seen more than 10 million threats added to its database since the beginning of this year alone.
As a result, security has become vital at not only software level, but at hardware level as well. For this reason, Intel has added security to its main pillars of concern, alongside power efficiency and Internet connectivity. It aims to achieve increased security through its partnership with McAfee.
Intel acquired McAfee in August, for approximately $7.68 billion. At the time, Ovum principal software analyst Graham Titterington theorised that Intel's objective was to incorporate more security features into its chips.
“For users, and for businesses, this will be welcome,” he said.
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