Sophos Intros NAC 3.0

SAN FRANCISCO -- At the RSA Conference today, Sophos, a world leader in integrated threat management solutions, launched Sophos NAC 3.0, a comprehensive network access control (NAC) solution for protecting against threats posed by unsecured computers. Giving IT administrators control over business partners, guests and employees accessing their network, Sophos NAC 3.0 does not require firms to change their existing network hardware infrastructure or existing security software solution. IT teams can now easily manage who has access to what within the organization's network, while also better protecting systems from malware attacks.

Sophos NAC 3.0 combines powerful assessment and reporting tools with comprehensive policy enforcement capabilities. Organizations can ensure security compliance even before users connect to the enterprise network whether they are logging on by LAN, remote, wired, wireless, managed or unmanaged endpoints.

Some key functions include:

"Finding a balance between easy network access and security is always a conundrum for system administrators,” said Christian Christiansen, program vice president, Security Products & Services, IDC. “Historically, these two applications run independently, requiring more administration time and related training. An integrated NAC solution strikes the necessary balance by protecting businesses’ assets from malicious threats at all endpoints."

Designed with flexibility and ease of use in mind, Sophos NAC 3.0 is centrally managed through an intuitive web interface. System administrators can create and manage policies that can be applied to employees, business partners, consultants and guests who may have access to the network. Endpoints can be permitted or denied access to the network, automatically remediated, isolated, quarantined, messaged or exempted from policies.

"In the real world, visitors are attaching their unprotected PCs to other company's networks, and users are turning off their firewalls after they have logged into the network,” said Steve Munford, CEO, Sophos. “Organizations allowing this behavior to continue are playing with fire. Sophos's policy-driven software NAC solution stops insecure and non-compliant computers from connecting to your network. In addition, it prevents users from exposing networks to threats by stopping them from tampering with their security settings."

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