Using Tricipher’s MyOneLogin to protect your Web credentials

A single-sign on, two-factor authentication portal that is easy to setup and deploy for both internal and external Web and other resources.

Price: $30 per user per year subscription service (or $3/mo/user)
Requirements: Runs on Windows IE v6 and above, Firefox v3 on both Windows and Mac
We tested the service on a variety of browsers on both computers during June 2009.

Pros:
 Simple to setup and deploy without any programming or security skills required
 Hosted service, no software to install on the desktop
 Powerful management controls for business users

Cons:
 Reports and event logging somewhat difficult to parse
 Doesn’t completely support Safari browsers

MyOneLogin.com
Tricipher Corp.
http://www.myonelogin.com/
650.376.8326
750 University Avenue
 #260,
 Los Gatos CA 95032

Using Symantec’s Endpoint Protection Small Business Edition

There is a newer version (2012) that is cloud-based. You can watch the video here.

An easy-to-use security application that includes anti-virus and intrusion protection that is very affordable and accessible for small business networks.

We tested RC of v12 on a small network running Windows Server 2003 and XP machines.

Pros: Simple to install and to setup default automatic protection, reports easy to understand, priced competitively with anti-virus only solutions
Cons: Only protects Windows PCs; default isn’t to replace built-in Windows firewall
Price: Server licensed free, with $44.99 MSRP per client with volume and competitive discounts available
Free 30-day trial for unlimited licenses

Supports: Windows XP (SP 1 or later), 2000/2003/2008 Servers, NOT on Vista
Symantec’s Endpoint Protection Small Business Edition
Symantec.com
20330 Stevens Creek Blvd.
Cupertino, CA 95014

Symantec Backup Exec for Windows Servers

An online backup server that covers a wide range of servers and services, this latest version includes the ability to protect Microsoft SharePoint and Exchange servers, VMware Infrastructure, and other sophisticated environments.

We tested Version 12.5 on a small test network with Windows Server 2008 and Mac and Windows clients.

Requirements: Windows 2000/2003/2008 Servers,
Price: $995 for one license, additional agents varies in price from $395 to $3195, depending on what you need to backup.

Symantec Corp.
http://symantec.com/backupexec
20330 Stevens Creek Blvd.
Cupertino, CA 95014

Pros:

  • Easy to setup and operate
  • Free 60 day trial helps you test out the service and become familiar with its operation
  • Granular Recovery Technology allows easy restoration of accidentally deleted files, emails, or documents.
  • VMware and Microsoft Hyper-V virtual server data protection that is easy to manage
  • Integrated online backup for flexible off-site data protection

Cons:

  • Some of the menus are a bit densely packed, such as the Job Setup screens
  • This is not a product for single server environments (there is a separate version for Microsoft’s Small Business Server that is more appropriate)

Deploying applications using Symantec’s Endpoint Virtualization Suite

The suite covers three separate products that have been acquired over the years by Symantec for applications delivery via streaming or virtual layers and a connection broker technology that allows enterprises to manage the way their applications are packaged and delivered to users’ desktops.


We tested Version 6.1 on various test machines in February 2009.

Requirements: Windows XP SP 1 or better with Java J2SE Runtime 5.0 update 6, Windows Server 2003/2008, Windows 2000, Windows Vista

Price: $360 (concurrent license), $270 (per node) for entire suite, Streaming + Virtualization $68, Virtualization only $44. Substantial volume license discounts.

Pros:
• Powerful software management for multiple use cases so that enterprises can configure and deliver a wide variety of applications and situations
• Granular virtualization layer technology
• Competitive price for the features that are included
Cons:
• Complex setup with multiple moving parts
• No common policy management across the various software modules
• Multiple management consoles for each software module

Symantec Endpoint Virtualization Suite
Symantec Corp.
http://symantec.com/
20330 Stevens Creek Blvd.
Cupertino, CA 95014

Online reputation management using McAfee’s Trusted Source

TrustedSource and other sites are used to answer questions such as – is someone sending spam that looks like it is coming from my domain, called spoofing? Has my Web site been compromised recently? Do I have an open relay email server that I don’t know about? The Internet is a nasty place, and the idea that a service can be watching globally for exploits is a good one.

TrustedSource.org
Secure Computing Inc.
55 Almaden Boulevard, Suite 500
San Jose, CA 95113
408.494.2020

Category: Internet reputation management
Free service, although registration required for additional features
Summary: TrustedSource has a variety of tools to investigate spoofing, spamming, and bot net proliferation that is taking place using your domain names. It is also included as part of a series of products offered by Secure Computing and others as a way of providing real-time threat blocking services.
Pros: Easy to use, a wide variety of information is presented in clear detail
Cons: It is a lot like brushing your teeth; you need to develop a daily habit of checking your site.

Building better workflows using Altiris Workflow Solution from Symantec

Symantec’s Altiris Workflow Solution v 6.0 is a series of products that were acquired from LogicBase called TLogic. Used together, they can help you automate virtually any IT process or workflow and imbed business logic into the processes too. The product can be useful for something that requires repetitive human interaction, such as designed an automated system for gambler’s comp packages at a casino to keeping track of cleaned rooms at a hospital. Almost any type of process or Workflow can be automated with Workflow Solution.

We tested the product in August 2008 on a prebuilt virtual machine that was supplied by Symantec.

AltirisSalesInfo@symantec.com, 888-252-5551
http://www.symantec.com

Requirements: Windows Server 2003 or later. Symantec’s Altiris Notification Server and several other Altiris SDK and developer tools (free)

Price: $25,000 for server and designer, additional designer licenses are $4,000 each
Category: Workflow management
Pros: Sophisticated models can be built with little programming expertise
Cons: There are a lot of moving parts to assemble before you can begin working

Protecting your messaging network with McAfee’s Secure Mail

McAfee/Secure Computing’s Secure Mail email security appliance combines several different but complementary protection technologies for both inbound and outbound emails in one easy-to-setup box. While lots of vendors have anti-spam products, Secure Mail offers a superior way to stay ahead of the constantly changing and increasingly sophistication of spammers, and the company guarantees it can block 99% of unwanted inbound emails. It also has a wide range of outbound protective features that can help corporations be in compliance with various reporting rules such as SoX and PCI.


Product category: Email security appliance
Pricing: Base unit starts at $1,995, plus an additional $13.00 per user/year, lower for multi-year contracts and for more than 500 user networks. There are more powerful and costly appliances for larger networks.

We tested version the S10 appliance, which is the smallest and least expensive unit, running software version 6.7 on a small network in September 2008.

Secure Computing www.securecomputing.com 1-800-379-4944
55 Almaden Boulevard, Suite 500, San Jose, CA 95113

Pros:
• Dashboard shows you status at-a-glance
• Almost all critical features managed by a Web browser
• Combines inbound and outbound email protection with global intelligence features of TrustedSource.org

Cons:
• Changing startup configuration values once you complete the wizard can be tricky to find the right input screens
• Reports can be difficult to interpret

Protecting your small business network with Napera’s appliance

Napera’s appliance works in conjunction with Microsoft’s Network Access Protection (NAP), and will support three different operating systems: XP with Service Pack 3, Vista, and Mac OS X. It allows for guest and identity-based access. It installs a small agent on each device that is used for the health check, and to help secure your computer and guide you with the remediation process. It also works with both wired and wireless networks too.

Category: Endpoint network security appliance

Pricing: $3495 for 24 gigabit managed ports. There are also stackable add-ons when you have larger networks. While this is expensive compared to other managed switches (Dell sells one for $500), it is a bargain when compared to full-featured NAC products from Cisco and others.

Pros:
Easy to use and setup
No Windows servers required to operate NAP

Cons:
Only Windows XP with SP3supported
Browsers must be at least IE7, Firefox 2 or Safari 3
Windows agents use Active X to install themselves

Napera Networks Inc 9423 SE 36th St Mercer Island, WA 98040
425 747 7142 http://www.napera.com
version tested: N24 v1.2.1

Protecting your Web browsing with McAfee’s Web Protection Service

McAfee/Secure Computing’s Secure Web Protection service offers a proxy server to protect both malware and not-worksafe Web sites. It is a simple and unbotrusiveway to protect your browsing. It isn’t useful for protecting Web servers from inbound attacks, for example, and shouldn’t substitute for a fully-featured intrusion appliance, but it can protect individuals and small networks especially with a lot of home-based and remote office users. It is based on the company’s experience with both its TrustedSource reputation management (see the separate review here) and its Secure Web security appliances.

Version: 1.0

Secure Computing www.securecomputing.com 55 Almaden Boulevard, Suite 500, San Jose, CA 95113
Product category: Web filtering and malware protection service
Pricing: 30-day free trial of the service for up to 250 users.
12 month subscription for both malware and filtering is $5 a month per user for 25 users. Quantity discounts available, and just filtering is less.

We tested the beta version of the service on a small network in September 2008.

Pros:
• Dashboard shows you status at-a-glance and easy to setup
• All critical features managed by a Web browser
• Uses the global intelligence features of TrustedSource.org

Cons:
• Service needs improvement to stop malware from entering via SSL connections

The six minute firewall from McAfee/Secure Computing

In this short video review, I will show you the most important features of Secure Firewall (form. known as Sidewinder) from McAfee/Secure Computing.


As enterprises depend more on Internet-based applications, it becomes harder to defend your network against blended exploits and attacks that target your specific applications. You need something like this product which is more than a standard firewall that typically relies on intrusion prevention and signature based defenses. Secure Firewall is a network and application security device with numerous protective features built-in that are especially useful for protecting your critical applications and data. Secure Firewall has a great track record in the industry when it comes to emergency security patches and CERT advisories, and comes with solid reporting and analysis features as well as the ability to create rules to defend Web applications.

We tested version 70007 on a small network in October 2008.

Pros:
• Combines inbound and outbound network & application protection for both known and unknown attack vectors
• Simple configuration of the TrustedSource global intelligence, and Geo-Location provide unique protections to reduce your organizations exposure to attack
• SSL & SSH inspection (decryption and filtering) protects against these holes in most deep inspection firewalls today
• Rules can be customized for particular defenses and very granular controls over applications

Cons:
• Uses a variety of management tools, some Windows-based, some browser-based
• Setting up different administrative roles is fairly complex

Info: www.securecomputing.com 55 Almaden Boulevard, Suite 500, San Jose, CA 95113
Product category: Email security appliance
Pricing: Least expensive unit $1,900 up to $70,000 for the largest networks