Sygate Strengthens Enterprise Protection

By outfitting device agents to perform the dual tasks of delivering both host intrusion prevention (HIP) and network access control (NAC), Sygate&'s new Enterprise Protection (SEP) 5.0 software can enable VARs to offer their customers better control of devices authorized to enter a network, said Jon Brody, vice president of marketing communications at Sygate, Fremont, Calif. Sygate was recently purchased by Symantec.

Launched earlier this month, SEP 5.0 takes the NAC tools Sygate traditionally has offered and blends them with additional HIP tools that can help prevent the unauthorized transfer of data at the client level, such as the copying of files to removable media such as USB storage devices or CD/ DVD burners, Sygate said.

Able to reach millions of networked devices, SEP 5.0 also can improve security at the operating system, application and network layers by helping to prevent buffer overflow attacks, application vulnerabilities such as unauthorized executable code, and network-based worms, the company said.

“You have to take extra steps to protect the network,” Brody said. “Then you have to take the incredibly massive step to make sure those steps are in place all the time.”

Dan Wilson, vice president of vendor relations at Accuvant, a Denver-based VAR that resells Sygate and competing end-point security products from vendors such as Internet Security Systems and Check Point, said Sygate has its advantages.

On the plus side are Sygate&'s strategic vendor partnerships, such as the one with Juniper Networks, and the typical size of a Sygate deal, which can grow to near seven figures, Wilson said.

A downside is that competitors such as Check Point own a lot of market acreage, meaning sales success often requires “greenfield opportunities,” Wilson said.

SEP 5.0 pricing for 1,000 seats starts at $65 per seat for desktops and laptops, and $115 per seat for servers.