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Print Edition StoriesFriday, August 29, 2008
Threat growth driving managed security swell
By Amy Castor, Special to Mass High Tech
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If you are thinking about handing the job of patrolling your network over to someone else, you are not alone. A recent report by firm Infonetics Research in California claims that the worldwide managed security market, including the sale of customer-premises equipment and network-based managed firewalls and content security services, will nearly double between 2007 and 2011, when it will reach $13.8 billion.
Driving that growth is a rise in the number of attacks that pummel the enterprise on a daily basis. “The threat volume is going up ridiculously fast, and it’s driving this requirement for companies to figure out how to protect themselves when they can’t afford to put a bunch of capital into new products,” said Jeff Wilson, principal analyst for network security at Infonetics.
Rather than invest heavily in in-house expertise on compliance or IT security staff, more companies are turning to managed security to do at least part of the job for them. According to Infonetics, they are showing a preference for “in the cloud” security, where service providers employ their own technology (intrusion detection and prevention, virus and spam blocking, web filtering, and other functions), to clean traffic before handing it over to the customer. Wilson said that most cloud services are provided by telecommunications companies such as Verizon Communications Inc. and AT&T Inc., some large product companies like IBM Corp. and Symantec Corp., and most recently, content provider Google Inc. with its ScanSafe technology.
This growth in security outsourcing means opportunities, not just for the managed security service providers, but also for the companies who supply them with technology and infrastructure.
Arbor Networks Inc. in Lexington is among those firms who are ramping up. The company specializes in guarding provider networks from threats such as distributed denial-of-service attacks, botnets and worms.
“We’re making significant investments in engineering and in our field organizations to meet those demands,” said Paul Scanlon, product manager at Arbor Networks. The company recently added deep-packet inspection to its portfolio when it acquired Ellacoya Networks in early 2008. “We’ve had a lot of success with our distributed denial-of-service,” added Scanlon. “Leveraging that as a managed service through the telecoms has been a strong win.”
Keeping up with raw demand is Arbor’s biggest challenge. “We’re looking at Internet traffic rates growing at 85 to 100 percent a year, and that hasn’t slowed down at all. In fact, with gas prices going up, more companies are tolerant of telecommuting.”
Also investing in future technology is Top Layer Networks Inc. in Westborough, a company that makes intrusion prevention systems to maintain, update, and monitor traffic. “Our business is growing on multiple fronts,” noted Ken Pappas, vice president of marketing and security strategist. “We are expanding our sales force and our reach, our marketing and support services.”
Top Layer’s foremost challenge in growth is locating good talent. The company is on the lookout for people who can think ahead of cyber criminals. “Security is a specialty,” said Pappas. “It’s not like you go to college, take a course, and come out an expert. You’ve got to learn how hackers think, work, the tools they use.”
Amy Castor is a freelance writer in Amherst.
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