Tivoli Beefs Up Database Support

The addition of database support allows Tivoli Risk Manager to monitor database security events and alert administrators if someone is trying to delete or modify a critical piece of data, said Dean Verhaeghe, a market manager at IBM's Tivoli software division, based here.

The product is also able to automatically respond to security incidents by stopping unauthorized access, deploying a patch or reconfiguring a server, Verhaeghe said.

Tivoli Risk Manager correlates database security events with security events from operating systems, firewalls and other devices across the enterprise network, allowing administrators to know which incidents pose real threats, he said.

The software provides centralized management of security events and is already interoperable with a variety of third-party products, including those from Check Point Software Technologies and Cisco Systems.

Tivoli Risk Manager's new database support is a good addition and part of an industry drive toward autonomic, or self-healing, computing, said Michael Roy, president of Blue World Information Technology, a Seattle-based solution provider.

Securing databases is critical, but companies often leave open default accounts or other access to databases, he said. "It's just another piece in the fragile IT puzzle that a good hacker would dive into," Roy said.

A key aspect of Tivoli Risk Manager is the comprehensive view of enterprise security it provides, Roy said. That helps companies tell which events are serious, he said.

Verhaeghe said the product provides the auditing function that more companies are looking for by allowing them to track who has accessed key data. The software also works with other IBM database management products that detect performance issues.

Customers that have Tivoli Risk Manager 4.1 can download the new database support via IBM's Web site for free.