Microsoft And Websense Team Up to Protect Data

PRESS RELEASE

WASHINGTON, D.C., MICROSOFT WORLDWIDE PARTNER CONFERENCE, July 13, 2010 - Websense, Inc. (NASDAQ: WBSN), a global leader in unified Web, data and email security solutions, today announced the extension of its integration of market-leading Websense Data Loss Prevention with Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) Windows Server 2008 R2 File Classification Infrastructure technology to discover, classify, and secure sensitive documents and files stored on Windows servers. The integration helps organizations meet the growing regulatory and security requirements for advanced data classification and application of security controls.

The challenge of end-to-end data protection is that there is a constant flux and movement of data used and stored in various places on a network or shared beyond traditional network boundaries. Gaining visibility and control around that data in today’s highly collaborative, highly distributed, highly dynamic environments requires being able to do real-time identification on the data as it is being used, stored, or moved—along with being able to apply protection and controls that stay with the data when it needs it. The combination of the Microsoft FCI and Websense DSS together deliver the solution for this new data protection requirement.

The combined Websense and Microsoft solution enables automatic identification, classification, and remediation of sensitive data with centrally managed security policies. Working in tandem, DLP identifies sensitive data in FCI and tells you where it is or where it is going and the RMS protects the actual content, even after it has left an organization, based on permissions of who is allowed access to the content. The tight integration enables customers to rapidly deploy a more effective data protection solution while lowering the total cost of ownership for data security.

“Our customers rely on data for their businesses that requires protection for where data resides and when and where it is used is critical,” said Eric Jewett, Director of Marketing at Microsoft. “We have delivered the capabilities and infrastructure to identify and classify the sensitivity of the data with File Classification Infrastructure in Windows Server 2008 R2. We have looked to partners to extend the platform by delivering to the solutions required by customers to leverage that infrastructure. The integration of the Websense DSS solution brings a powerful way to expand the coverage and capability with DLP in an easy-to-use manner for our combined customers.”

The integration surpasses watered-down and cumbersome detection and enforcement methods used in more basic DLP technologies, which rely primarily on less accurate keyword dictionaries and regular expressions. Instead, the joint solution pairs Websense Precise ID and Microsoft FCI capabilities to provide more accurate detection. That is critical to increasing efficiency in actual protection without blocking or locking out the business from accessing its critical data.

Customers also reduce costs by unifying Websense data intelligence and automated policy framework with Microsoft classification and file controls to bring governance risk and compliance and IT-GRC solutions to an organization’s file infrastructure with easy, streamlined administration and workflow.

“We have private and regulated data that we protect using integrated Microsoft and Websense data protection capabilities," said Aegir Thordarson, Infrastructure Manager - IT Department NBI. “By further integrating the Microsoft File Classification infrastructure with their data loss protection technology, Websense has made their DLP solution even more effective and has made it easier for us to manage our sensitive data and apply policies that protect that data, even if it leaves our network.”

Together, the leading technologies from Websense and Microsoft allow for easier security and management of sensitive data, which helps protect organizations from both malicious and accidental data loss with unprecedented ease, reducing the number of hours devoted to administering end-to-end data protection.

“Finding innovative solutions to the biggest challenges customers face and delivering those solutions in ways that improve ease of use, lower the cost of ownership, and maximize the investments customers need to make to protect their data is what drives Websense,” said Devin Redmond, vice president, product management, Websense. “This integration is more evidence of the leadership of our DLP solution with increased capability that lowers cost. It joins a growing list of advances from Websense, including recently making our highly regarded DLP technology easier to deploy and manage than the rest of the DLP industry with our revolutionary DLP for Download.”

To learn more about Microsoft File Classification Infrastructure, please visit: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2008/en/us/fci.aspx

To learn more about Websense Data Security Suite, please visit: http://www.websense.com/content/DataSecurity.aspx

About Websense, Inc.

Websense, Inc. (NASDAQ: WBSN), a global leader in unified Web, data and email content security solutions, delivers the best security for modern threats at the lowest total cost of ownership to tens of thousands of enterprise, mid-market and small organizations around the world. Distributed through a global network of channel partners and delivered as software, appliance and software-as-a-service (SaaS), Websense content security solutions help organizations leverage new communication, collaboration, and Web 2.0 business tools while protecting from advanced persistent threats, preventing the loss of confidential information and enforcing Internet use and security policies. Websense is headquartered in San Diego, California with offices around the world. For more information, visit http://www.websense.com.