A new piece of hardware from StreamShield Networks could
open the door to managed content security services where filtering
is conducted in real time.
StreamShield Protector blocks viruses and spam at the internet
layer before they get to a company's firewall. It also prevents
end-users viewing unsuitable web content, even if their initial
requests get through the company's network perimeter.
StreamShield Protector is built around the Streamscan chip, which
can scan up to 5,000 e-mails a second for viruses and spam, and
filter 250,000 web page requests per second.
Similar products designed for use on customer premises are not as
fast and often result in performance degradation for users,
according to analysts.
Jose Lopez, an analyst at Frost and Sullivan, said, "I believe the
migration of content security into service providers' and
operators' networks, so that protection is provided as a managed
service to businesses and consumers, is a trend which will fuel the
evolution of the market.
"The barrier to this happening so far has been the availability of
technology to do this in real time, at very high speeds - something
which StreamShield Networks is addressing with its new
product."
StreamShield Protector will be available from next month.
StreamShield chief executive Simon Gawne said he expected service
providers to charge firms between £1 and £4 per user per month for
using the system.
Research from Mori found that 60% of internet users look to their
ISP to stop viruses, spam and offensive content, and 55% said they
would pay extra for the service.
What StreamShield Protector offers
- Site blocker. Enforces internet usage policies. Uses a
blacklist database holding six million entries.
- Spam blocker. Uses Bayesian statistics, blacklists and
rule-based filters.
- Virus blocker. For in-bound and outbound e-mails. Uses
heuristics technology to block new threats.
- Mail retrieve. Automatically stores in-bound e-mails if the
user's internet connection goes down.
- Customer console. End-users can set their own rules and see
what is being stopped from reaching their network.