US SECURE COMPUTING SURVEY SHOWS SURGING INTEREST IN UTM APPLIANCES FOR COMPUTER DATA SECURITY
M2 Presswire

July 18, 2005

894 words


SECURE COMPUTING CORPORATION: New study for Secure Computing finds surging interest in UTM appliances by business; 60 per cent of IT managers considering security appliances, prefer UTM vendors who offer best of breed on a single appliance


M2 PRESSWIRE-JULY 18, 2005-SECURE COMPUTING CORPORATION: New study for Secure Computing finds surging interest in UTM appliances by business; 60 per cent of IT managers considering security appliances, prefer UTM vendors who offer best of breed on a single appliance ©1994-2005 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD

Secure Computing Corporation, the expert in securing connections between people, applications, and networks, has announced the results of an independent survey documenting the attitudes of enterprise IT managers toward Unified Threat Management (UTM) security appliances. The study found surging interest among businesses, as almost 50 per cent of interviewees indicated "more" or "much more" interest in multi-function security appliances compared to 12 months previously.

More than 60 per cent were seriously considering using a security appliance for multiple security functions; another 10 per cent already do or plan to in the next 12 months. The UTM market is expected to boom over the next few years, according to research firm IDC. In 2003, the total sales in this category were $105 million, but that is expected to grow to $3.5 billion by 2008.

The survey, titled "Unified Threat Management Appliances: Ready to Take Off?" was conducted for Secure Computing by TheInfoPro, Inc., an independent research firm. The study surveyed 102 enterprise IT managers across a broad variety of industries in April 2005, and is available at http://www.securecomputing.com/goto/UTM For years the IT community has debated whether or not security functions should be "all-in-one" vs. "best of breed" security point solutions. According to the study, IT managers are saying they want both - best-of-breed security functions from multiple vendors on a single platform. A majority of interviewees (55 per cent) indicated a preference that functions on a single security appliance are from more than one vendor; another 14 percent were neutral.

A somewhat surprising result of the study was that IT managers are not motivated by a desire to reduce the number of security vendors. Most enterprises were not concerned about using fewer security vendors; just over a third said it is somewhat or very important to use fewer vendors.

Just 38 per cent cited the ability to work with fewer vendors as very important or somewhat important as a factor in selecting a UTM.

Rather than fewer vendors, what IT managers want by a margin of greater than 70 per cent in a security appliance are: the ability to manage multiple security functions from a single interface; the ability to view integrated security reports that combine multiple product functions; and cost savings/low total cost of ownership.

"What we see from this study is a significant change in the security market where businesses now want best-of-breed/all-in-one' security," said Steve Miller, vice president of worldwide marketing for Secure Computing. "The Sidewinder G2 Security Appliance is a world-class, award-winning solution that delivers on that promise to customers of all sizes."

About Secure Computing

Secure Computing (NASDAQ: SCUR) has been securing the connections between people and information for over 20 years. Specializing in delivering solutions that secure these connections, Secure Computing is uniquely qualified to be the global security solutions provider to organizations of all sizes. Our more than 14,000 global customers, supported by a worldwide network of partners, include the majority of the Dow Jones Global 50 Titans and the most prominent organizations in banking, financial services, healthcare, telecommunications, manufacturing, public utilities, and federal and local governments. The company is headquartered in San Jose, California., and has sales offices worldwide. For more information, see http://www.securecomputing.com.

About TheInfoPro

TheInfoPro (TIP) (www.theinfopro.net) is an independent research network and a leading supplier of market intelligence for the Information Technology (IT) industry. TIP produces fundamental, objective, "grass roots" research on: markets, vendors, issues, future adoption plans, and investor confidence. Transparency is the core of TIP's research process with intelligence delivered without spin, bias or intermediation. TIP produces syndicated and custom research in critical industry segments including Information Security, Network Storage, and Networking.

This press release contains forward-looking statements relating to Secure Computing's ability to deliver security solutions to enterprise customers, and the expected benefits of such, and such statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Among the important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements are delays in product development, undetected software errors or bugs, competitive pressures, technical difficulties, changes in customer requirements, general economic conditions and the risk factors detailed from time to time in Secure Computing's periodic reports and registration statements filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

(M2 Communications Ltd disclaims all liability for information provided within M2 PressWIRE. Data supplied by named party/parties. Further information on M2 PressWIRE can be obtained at http://www.presswire.net on the world wide web. Inquiries to info@m2.com).

July 18, 2005