There are dozens of products that claim to solve the endpoint security problem by making sure laptops and other endpoints are virus-free and otherwise secure before allowing them onto the network. These appliances work with standards being developed by Microsoft, Cisco Systems, Juniper Networks, and others to assess PC health and provide some form of remediation and network protection.

But before you install a call box at your door, you need to first understand how endpoint security products complement and extend your security infrastructure. Here are four key questions; answering them will help you choose a product best suited for your organization:

• What security infrastructure do you have in place already, such as firewalls, intrusion prevention, and authentication servers?
• What on your network are you really protecting?
• What will be your desktop deployment strategy?
• Do you have non-PC endpoints to manage?

You can read more in this article entitled, “Who’s There?”for Information Security magazine. (registration req.)