In an effort to help clients proactively identify and prevent potential threats to their organization, IBM has introduced what it claims is the industry's fastest and most comprehensive network security appliance.

Designed to help enterprises meet the challenges of an increasingly sophisticated and rapidly changing threat landscape, the IBM Network Intrusion Protection System (IPS) GX7800 is designed to help organizations protect their data and infrastructure from unauthorized access and attacks without compromising on the performance and availability of business-critical applications.  

Notably, the appliance:

• Operates at an estimated 20 gigabits per second (GBps), almost 2 times faster than competitive offerings(1)
• Provides organizations with a full scope of security protection--such as Web application protection--without disrupting network performance
• Extends to the cloud to protect data
• Uses IBM X-Force intelligence to help clients stay ahead of the threat

Organizations today are facing new security threats everyday whether in the form of unintentional data leaks at the hands of internal staff or malicious viruses, bots, and targeted attacks that seek to exploit vulnerabilities throughout the IT infrastructure. Historically, organizations have been forced to choose between either running security protections to defend against these threats or efficiently running business-critical applications--potentially leaving themselves open to attack.  

"As threats continue to grow--both in and outside of an organizations four walls--businesses must take the right steps to protect critical assets without disrupting network performance," said Steve Robinson, general manager, IBM Security Solutions. "With the new appliance, IBM is helping enterprise clients operate their business at full speed, in a secure and efficient environment."

The new appliance enables security capabilities to be deployed at the network core where performance and availability are the most critical. This includes key features above and beyond traditional IPS, such as Web application protection, data loss prevention, and "Virtual Patch" technology, all of which can run concurrently for higher levels of protection. For example, through integration with IBM Rational AppScan, the updated solution can automatically generate custom security policies to help protect Web applications based on the specific vulnerabilities identified by AppScan.

Enterprises using the IBM IPS can also lower costs and complexity as they are able to consolidate legacy intrusion protection systems and appliances.  Additionally, clients can deploy and manage the appliance on their own, or rely on expertise from IBM Managed Security Services to further reduce the cost of running their security operations center. The new IPS is supported as part of a comprehensive security solution through two managed security services offerings: Intrusion Detection and Prevention System Management as well as Managed Protection Services.

With the increased performance of the appliance, IBM is also extending its ability to secure data in the cloud and helping clients with their migration to new IT delivery models.  To further assist clients in adopting these capabilities, IBM provides both managed security and consulting services that work closely with clients to address their individual cloud concerns, including: evaluations of the security positioning of planned or existing cloud implementations as well as recommendations for various security strategies.

This new platform provides levels of performance and availability that are well suited to organizations that can't compromise the security of their networks or the performance of their applications, such as companies within the data-intensive financial services industry where downtime can have disastrous effects.  With support for today's high-speed 10 gigabit Ethernet networks and a powerful, high-speed security inspection engine, the IBM IPS can also scale to deliver the same protection to cloud providers concerned with protecting not only their own data, but their customers' data as well.

The protection offered by the appliance is unique in the industry because it enables clients to get ahead of threats to their systems, workstations and endpoints, instead of forcing them to wait until an attack strikes.  This is particularly useful in the case of attacks on Web applications, which represented over 55 percent of all vulnerabilities in the first half of 2010. Backed by IBM X-Force research, the IBM IPS will extend Virtual Patch protection to block any threat that X-Force researchers deem a potential risk, even before a vulnerability is publicly disclosed and the software publisher issues its patch.

Network Intrusion Protection systems are network security appliances that protect network and/or system activities from malicious activity. For more details, visit: http://www-01.ibm.com/software/tivoli/products/security-network-intrusion-prevention/.

With more than 40 years of security development and innovation, IBM is a company with the breadth and depth of research, products, services, consulting and global business partners to deliver end-to-end security. IBM has nine worldwide research labs innovating security technology and nine security operations centers around the world to help global clients maintain the appropriate security posture.

For more information on IBM Security Solutions, visit: http://www.ibm.com/security or http://www.ibm.com/press/us/en/presskit/33537.wss.