Avinti Updates Zero-Day Threat Trap

The product, Isolation Server 2.0, uses virtual desktop technology to trap incoming e-mail that contains active content between the network gateway and the e-mail server. There, the content is scanned and opened. If abnormal behavior occurs, the message is quarantined. If not, it is released to the recipient mailbox.

Bill Cooper, president of Stalwart Systems, a Charlotte, N.C.-based solution provider and new Avinti reseller, said the product complements the traditional antivirus products that he already recommends and sells. "Signature-based stuff is great but doesn't protect against zero-day attacks," he said.

What makes Isolation Server 2.0 particularly attractive is its ability to protect against threats for which patches or fixes have not yet been created, according to Cooper. "The gap sometimes is hours, and protecting yourself in the gap is hard to do," he said. "They're solving the problem at a different level."

Curtis Tirrell, vice president of marketing at Lindon, Utah-based Avinti, said the update to Isolation Server allows the product to handle up to 10,000 mailboxes and more by adding additional appliances. The product's price starts at $12.50 per mailbox for a deployment supporting 100 users, he said.

Isolation Server 2.0 also includes new reporting features so customers and solution providers can better analyze incoming streams and understand potential breaches more quickly, Tirrell added. "A virus that is intent on doing damage does it quickly," he said.

Art Costigan, founder of Global Network Security Consultants, a security VAR in Huntington Valley, Pa., said the update includes improvements to the installation process and management interface. "Version 2.0 shows a maturity in terms of product development. The company obviously has a development goal in mind and is constantly improving the products it has," said Costigan, whose company has been working with Avinti for several months.

Avinti, which claims about 100 customer installations for its products, last month garnered a $7.2 million B round of venture funding from Sequel Venture Partners, vSpring Capital, Wilson Sonsini Investments and Staley Capital Advisers. It expects to disclose an additional investment and a strategic partnership in June, Tirrell said, declining to provide details.