http://www.washtech.com/news/netarch/15935-1.html By Steven Bonisteel, Newsbytes.com Monday, April 1, 2002; 9:35 AM Businesses beefing up network-security measures these days still worry more about viruses and the antics of renegade hackers than international terrorists, according to a new report from In-Stat/MDR. A survey by the technology market research firm suggests that attacks on the U.S. by terrorists last fall had little impact on the network security concerns of most businesses. InStat said 80 percent of businesses it surveyed reported that feelings about network security were the "same as before" Sept. 11's terrorist attacks. Instead, the researchers said, sales of security technology are driven by the need to protect local networks from viruses and hackers. In addition, larger enterprises in particular are turning to virtual private network (VPN) technology to secure connections between remotes offices and mobile workers. "There are various technologies that address network security challenges originating from both within the local area network - remote branch offices, telecommuters, wireless access nodes, and business partners on extranets - and outside the local area network from viruses and hackers," said InStat analyst Sam Lucero, in a prepared statement. "A large number of security vendors, selling a wide range of products, are competing in this market, with the market for 'low- end' security appliances and software primarily served by smaller companies focusing exclusively on security technology and the larger, traditional networking equipment vendors dominating the market for 'mid- to high-end' equipment, providing a portfolio of security products attractive to large corporate customers." InStat said companies large and small are protecting their networks with firewall technology, with bigger businesses more likely to choose a hardware based system, while smaller outfits were more likely to use a software-based firewall on regular PC server. Lucero said companies surveyed by In-Stat cited manageability and compatibility as being just as important when selecting security technology as price. "Those vendors that can focus on these core criteria will fair the best in this highly competitive space," he said. - ISN is currently hosted by Attrition.org To unsubscribe email majordomoat_private with 'unsubscribe isn' in the BODY of the mail.
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