Kaspersky Lab Bundles Eight Products into Anti-Malware Package

Kaspersky Lab bundled eight security products into an Anti-Malware Protection System to provide seamless security from endpoint and mobile devices all the way to the gateway. 

A mix of new and enhanced software, the Anti-Malware Protection System was announced on Nov. 2. The new Kaspersky products include the Kaspersky Security for Internet Gateway to scan Web traffic and the Kaspersky Endpoint Security for Smartphone, with support for Symbian, Windows Mobile, and BlackBerry phones. 

The enhanced applications have a newly updated anti-virus engine, and include Kaspersky Anti-Virus 8.0 for Windows Servers Enterprise Edition; for Linux and FreeBSD File Servers; and for Lotus Domino; Kaspersky Security 8.0 for Microsoft Exchange Servers 2007/2010; and Kaspersky Endpoint Security 8.0 for Linux and Mac. 

"This launch is not about products. It's about establishing the best anti-malware protection across every layer of the enterprise," said Gary Mullen, senior director for marketing at Kaspersky. 

Malware has become "incredibly sophisticated" with many threat vectors, so it's important to have multiple layers of protection, said Mullen. With a mobile workforce that gets online outside of the office, having just an anti-virus on the gateway is not enough, said Mullen. Kaspersky made it a point to have the same anti-virus engine in every product component to ensure the "most comprehensive" security was available, according to Mullen. 

Kaspersky Security for Internet Gateway scans only Web traffic, and does not scan traffic going through other ports that the organization has open in the firewall, said Mullen. Organizations can open up non-Web ports—ports other than 443, 80, 8000 or 8080—in the firewall to give users access to certain applications and machines, which leaves them unprotected unless there are other levels of protection in place.

While malware specifically targeting Macs and Linux platforms is still not as prevalent as Windows-based attacks, IT managers can't afford to ignore endpoint security for those two operating systems, said Mullen. With OS X gaining market share, cyber-criminals are using Macs as "jump points" to infect Windows machines on the internal network, he said.  

In other words, if a Mac user comes across a virus, worm or Trojan, either on a USB drive or from an online source, that piece of malware wouldn't affect the Mac itself but can hop through the network looking for file servers or other Windows machines to infect. 

Kaspersky developed a centralized management console that gives a complete view into all the malware risks within the organization's environment, said Mullen. The console allows IT administrators to manage heterogeneous platforms, automate deployment, simplify maintenance, and upgrade security software, according to the company.  

Kaspersky Anti-Virus 8.0 for Linux and FreeBSD File Servers offers protection for open-source platforms and remote management capabilities, said the company. It also has specific support for EMC's Celerra devices, according to Mullen. 

The updated anti-virus engine is integrated with a new anti-spam engine for email security products from IBM's Lotus Domino and Microsoft Exchange Servers. Endpoint Security for Smartphone features anti-virus, anti-theft, remote recovery and data privacy. Mullen said the new Windows Mobile 7 phones would also be protected under the smartphone security product, along with older Windows Mobile phones, Blackberrys, and Symbian-based phones. 

The Anti-Malware Protection System will be available in November, said Mullen. Customers can choose to purchase individual programs "ala carte" or as part of a suite that matches "what they want to protect," said Mullen. The business suite will include only the file server and endpoint security packages. The enterprise suite will add on the email security package. All eight programs will be available in the total protection suite, according to Mullen. 

The management console will be included for free regardless of the suite purchased, said Mullen.