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LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla.—iPass Inc. today will broaden its virtual network services portfolio to give CIOs the ability to automatically enforce connection policies for mobile workers.
The new iPass Endpoint Policy Management Service allows IT managers to automatically check to ensure that users accessing the corporate intranet have the right “credentials” before they are allowed access to the corporate virtual private network, Jon Russo, vice president of marketing for the Redwood Shores, Calif., company, said at the Gartner Symposium here.
The new service, an option to the existing iPass Corporate Access service, enforces policies around the VPN version and definition files, operating system updates and patches.
It is designed to minimize the risk to the corporate intranet posed by mobile workers.
It provides a range of choices in dealing with non-compliance to established policies. For example, access can be limited to preferred methods only, access can be denied from specified geographic locations, or “runaway” sessions that go on too long can be disconnected, according to Chris Richards, iPass director of products.
Policies can be enforced around VPN versions and configurations, personal firewall versions, anti-virus versions, operating system updates and patches.
IT managers can use the Web to configure the policies from a central location.
The option is made up of an applet upgrade to the existing iPassConnect service interface resident in the endpoint device; an upgrade to the iPass-hosted policy servers that deliver software updates to endpoints; and a Web toolkit for setting and enforcing policies and creating reports.
The iPass Corporate Access service provides secure access to corporate networks from 20,000 access points in 150 countries. The service aggregates connection types and services from some 280 service providers and carriers. It includes about 3,500 Wi-Fi and Ethernet broadband locations.
The service option is due out by years end, when pricing will be announced.