Stories about: EndPoints

Security issues often seem to smolder more than burn, but these six are certainly capable of lighting a fire under IT professionals at a moment's notice. Handle with care.

It takes a lot to shock Chris Goggans; he's been a pen (penetration) tester since 1991, getting paid to break into a wide variety of networks. But he says nothing was as egregious as security lapses in both infrastructure design and patch management at a civilian government agency -- holes that let him hack his way through to a major FBI crime database within a mere six hours.

Corporate IT executives need to beware the seven dirty secrets of the security industry that can undermine the safety of business networks, a security expert told attendees at Interop Las Vegas.

There are lots of ways business networks can be compromised, and more are developing all the time. They range from technology exploits to social engineering attacks, and all can compromise corporate data, reputation and the ability to conduct business effectively.

As enterprises seek out ways to reduce IT costs, optimize resources and improve operational efficiencies, three technology trends have started to dominate: virtualization, service-oriented architecture and mobility. More promising yet is the intertwining of these unique technologies.

What is true enterprise security and how do you get it? Bogus promises by vendors are all too common. In this interview, outspoken security analyst Nick Selby humorously tackles the truth about data leakage products, smartphone protection, hotspot threats and the word "solution." Nick Selby leads The 451 Group's Enterprise Security Practice. Selby also serves as The 451 Group's Director of Research Operations and is on the faculty of the Institute for Applied Network Security.

Enterprise connectivity is exploding, driven by globalization, convergence, virtualization and social computing. As corporate perimeters dissolve, the security focus switches towards application and data-level security solutions. The question to ask is what are the longer-term implications for network security? Will it become redundant or could it grow more powerful? Only one thing seems certain: It will be different from today.

Despite official urging, telecommuting within US federal agencies is languishing, in part because standards for how to secure mobile endpoints don't exist -- mainly the laptops telecommuters would use when outside the office.

What are some of the challenges in deploying NAC? What are the alternatives for LAN security?

A recent buzzword in security is endpoint: any device that can connect to the corporate network, ranging from a desktop workstation to a laptop, PDA or even mobile phone. As the number of endpoints increases, firewalls and antivirus software are no longer adequate protection

The marriage of SonicWall and Aventail could result in a new network access control (NAC) vendor after the companies have the chance to assess and integrate their respective technologies.