Seeking financial support for NAC

Network Access Control This newsletter is sponsored by NetOptics Fail-Safe IPS Integration with Bypass Technology Threats that require the installation, redeployment or upgrade of in-Line IPS appliances often affect uptime on business critical links. Organizations are demanding solutions that prevent disruptive outages and provide an efficient return on investment for their IPS resources. Net Optics offers intelligent Bypass solutions for a secure in-Line deployment with remote control and monitoring. Network World's Network Access Control Newsletter, 07/26/07 Seeking financial support for NAC By Tim Greene One of the problems with any IT project is getting funding for it from within the business, and the same is true with NAC. Standard justifications for projects include a proved cost savings, more business productivity for end users, protection of the network itself and, moreso lately, demonstrating compliance with regulations. All of these can be applied to NAC. The degree to which they apply depends on individual businesses. Here are some NAC-specific things to look for when seeking financial support for NAC. Manage Insider Security Threats Experts say 75% of security threats come from inside your organization. Watch the latest Network World Editorial Perspectives Webcast today, "Security From the Inside," and learn which technologies and processes best protect your intellectual property and assets inside the perimeter. Click Here to View In most cases, NAC is an add-on to a network so it isn’t easy to come up with a hard ROI. Say a network installs, getting WAN optimization gear that puts off buying more bandwidth clearly saves money. The case for NAC is not as black-and-white. It could be argued that detecting devices that represent a significant risk before they access the network will reduce the number of attacks against the network that result in IT time spent fighting them and the business costs of downtime. Are soft costs, but nonetheless real. If the network is subject to fewer attacks, it stands to reason the network will be more available to end users, so they will be more productive than they would be otherwise. NAC doesn’t give them additional functionality, but it can make their current resources more available. NAC can definitely help with regulatory compliance. It is not a comprehensive answer to any set of regulations, but it can be part of a security and monitoring strategy that adds up to compliance. Tying user identities with machines as NAC does, for example, could help meet regulations that call for demonstrating that access to certain data is restricted. Depending on the value individual businesses place on the benefits NAC provides, it may be more or less affordable. That may help make the decision of what NAC architecture to adopt, because they can be more or less expensive.   What do you think? Post a comment on this newsletter

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Contact the author: Tim Greene is a senior editor at Network World, covering network access control, virtual private networking gear, remote access, WAN acceleration and aspects of VoIP technology. You can reach him at tgreene@nww.com. This newsletter is sponsored by NetOptics Fail-Safe IPS Integration with Bypass Technology Threats that require the installation, redeployment or upgrade of in-Line IPS appliances often affect uptime on business critical links. Organizations are demanding solutions that prevent disruptive outages and provide an efficient return on investment for their IPS resources. Net Optics offers intelligent Bypass solutions for a secure in-Line deployment with remote control and monitoring. ARCHIVE Archive of the Network Access Control Newsletter. BONUS FEATURE IT PRODUCT RESEARCH AT YOUR FINGERTIPS Get detailed information on thousands of products, conduct side-by-side comparisons and read product test and review results with Network World’s IT Buyer’s Guides. Find the best solution faster than ever with over 100 distinct categories across the security, storage, management, wireless, infrastructure and convergence markets. Click here for details. PRINT SUBSCRIPTIONS AVAILABLE You've got the technology snapshot of your choice delivered to your inbox each day. Extend your knowledge with a print subscription to the Network World newsweekly, Apply here today. International subscribers, click here. SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES To subscribe or unsubscribe to any Network World newsletter, change your e-mail address or contact us, click here. This message was sent to: networking.world@gmail.com. Please use this address when modifying your subscription. Advertising information: Write to Associate Publisher Online Susan Cardoza Network World, Inc., 118 Turnpike Road, Southborough, MA 01772 Copyright Network World, Inc., 2007