Wireless Security Seeks Sweet Spot

It doesn't happen often, but every once in a while enhancements to a technology keep pace with demand and need, as is the case with wireless security, which is evolving nearly hand-in-hand with the maturation of wireless networks. In some cases, they're outpacing them. That's the good news. The bad news is that many customers are still wary of wireless, leaving most VARs months or years away from a wireless payoff.

"Until our IT department develops standards and puts together a support plan, wireless won't be permitted," says David Bowser, manager of information services for Kennametal, a manufacturer of metal-cutting tools headquartered in Latrobe, Pa., which has a strict policy against using wireless to access its networks. The company deploys managed security solutions from Vigilant Minds, a security systems vendor in Pittsburgh, primarily as portable auditing tools that detect any wireless intrusions onto its networks.

It is, in fact, unfortunate and more than a little ironic that while wireless security,indeed, all of security,has taken off, the disappointing demand for wireless has slowed the development of new technology. "A lot of commercial and government enterprises have taken a wait-and-see approach to wireless and wireless security, but when you take a broad look at the architecture, it's here today, it's real, and it works," says Jack Pooley, vice president of iGov, a McLean, Va.-based government VAR.

Pooley says that while his company is monitoring wireless developments, the sector has been slow-going so far. "Wireless implementations have been slower because of customer apprehension and because people still are becoming educated about it," he says. "Because it's not yet a commodity and the learning curve still is long, sales cycles for wireless are significantly longer."

In fact, the range of potential wireless security breaches increases as wireless hot spots proliferate in public places and wireless company networks expand. "[While] the cycle time between the release of a worm or virus, the exploitation of it and the response to it has decreased geometrically, you can't control access to a wireless network as well as you can to a wire line network, so it adds an element of anonymity," says Vigilant Minds CEO John Foley.

As with other security products, the best-selling tool for wireless solutions often is the ability to show customers how easily exploited and potentially costly their network vulnerabilities can be. GBD Group, a Ronkonkoma, N.Y.-based IT consultant, is helping VARs put together solutions that they can sell to their clients as services. GBD president and CEO Ray Shah says education is the key to selling wireless security. "Many companies don't even know what they need to implement it," he says.

The hope, of course, is that hot names like Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, as well as related wireless initiatives, will trigger a revival of the entire technology industry.

"VARs have been waiting to grab onto something since the boom, and Wi-Fi security is something that can bring business back into the reseller community," says Chris Weiss, director of IT for London-based Red-M, which makes wireless control and security solutions that work with the emerging Bluetooth and 802.11 bands, among others.

Red-M joins Vigilant Minds and other new and established companies, including Cranite Systems, Enterasys, Fortress Technologies and SMC, in developing solutions that address various aspects of wireless security. Now, they just need more wireless networks to protect.

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