Key Findings Indicate that Serious Network Vulnerabilities and Growing Number
of Attacks Continue to Cripple Status Quo Security Defenses
SAN JOSE, Calif. and CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- RSA
CONFERENCE -- Mazu Networks, Inc., the leading provider of behavior-based
network security solutions, today announced the availability of the second
annual Mazu Networks Internal Threat Report. The research reveals that
although enterprises are more aware of the internal network threat, they
continue to fall victim to a growing number of attacks that circumvent
perimeter and endpoint security solutions.
"The research proves that enterprises remain vulnerable to documented
threats as well as new attack types and vectors," said Jon Oltsik, senior
information security analyst for ESG and the study's principal author. "With
highly publicized attacks monopolizing media real estate in 2005, it is no
surprise that many companies still lack confidence in their ability to defend
effectively their critical networks from compromise. The results demonstrate
the need for a more layered defense strategy that provides extensive internal
network visibility."
In its second year, the 2006 Mazu Networks Internal Threat Report offers
year-over-year research comparisons as well as a number of new data points
that further illustrate the state of internal network security. The research
delves deeper into the security challenges enterprises face and offers insight
into the types and the frequency of internal attacks, common network
vulnerabilities and the impact of regulatory issues on information security.
Key research findings include:
The growing number of organizations granting network access to external
constituencies represents a growing risk
* The research shows that 85% of the respondents stated that their
organization extends network access to non-employees. Thirty-nine
percent of respondents expect the number of non-employees accessing the
network to grow significantly during the next few years.
High risk vulnerabilities commonplace in corporate networks
* Respondents found a number of risky vulnerabilities on their networks
during 2005. Of the companies surveyed: 28% found unauthorized
reconnaissance; 23% found unauthorized personnel with root or
administrator access and 17% found suspicious connections to critical
applications and databases on their networks.
Internal attacks pose a major threat to critical business assets
* Twenty-three percent had an internal breach, while 27% had no means of
knowing whether or not an attack had occurred.
* Eighteen percent experienced more than five targeted attacks that were
externally sourced.
* An additional 27% did not know whether or not they were compromised by a
credentialed user.
Worms remain a major disruptive force to enterprise network security
* Defense strategies against worm attacks also proved ineffective this
past year. The research results showed that there was zero improvement
in defeating worm attacks during 2005 as compared to 2004 findings.
Despite a decrease in the number of worm attacks and an increase in
security spending, 51% of companies surveyed reported that their
internal network was compromised by worms during the last 12 months.
* Twenty-five percent of the respondents stated that it took between three
and six hours to detect a worm attack, while 26% stated that it took
more than 24 hours to remediate the impact of the attack.
* Worm attacks caused 66% of the respondents to experience system downtime
followed by: 36% experiencing interruption of a critical application,
service or system; 19% experiencing intellectual property theft and 14%
experiencing data corruption or loss.
These results are despite an increase in perimeter security investments
* Firewalls deployed, 99%.
* Network-based IDS deployed, 72%.
* Network-based IPS deployed, 43%.
* Host-based IDS deployed, 45%.
* Host-based IPS deployed, 33%.
"Through our research we have learned that although people continue to
invest in perimeter and endpoint security solutions at an increasing rate,
they are still vulnerable to a wide range of threats," said Tom Corn, vice
president, marketing and strategy, Mazu Networks. "Our latest research
provides clear and statistical proof that the internal network threat is real
and ever-changing. Through our behavior-based approach, Mazu Networks is the
only company that can effectively secure today's more open, expansive and
inter-connected corporate networks."
The study, which was conducted for Mazu Networks by ESG, analyzed data
gathered directly from 218 U.S.-based organizations with more than 1,000
employees each. The survey asked security and IT professionals at these firms
about their experiences with threats and attacks against their internal
corporate networks in 2005. Survey questions focused on attacks that
originated directly from within their networks and on attacks that
successfully penetrated their core networks after evading perimeter-based
security measures.
To receive a free copy of the Mazu Networks Internal Threat Report,
register online at: http://www.mazunetworks.com/2006_threatreport.
About Enterprise Strategy Group
Enterprise Strategy Group is a leading industry analyst firm that provides
strategic guidance and unmatched service to technology vendors, IT
professionals, venture capitalists, and institutional investors. The
Enterprise Strategy Group offers products and services focused on application
infrastructure, information security and information management. Enterprise
Strategy Group sets itself apart from legacy analyst firms and boutiques by
continuing to build its excellent reputation of assisting clients to make
strategic business and IT decisions.
About Mazu Networks, Inc.
Mazu Networks provides behavior-based network security solutions that
analyze network traffic and behavior to operate enterprise networks more
securely. Mazu Networks' offerings include Mazu Profiler(TM) -- a Network
Behavior Analysis (NBA) system for detecting and mitigating worms and internal
threats, providing network-wide visibility, and easing the burden of
regulatory compliance efforts and Mazu Enforcer(TM) -- a perimeter security
solution for detecting and mitigating denial-of-service attacks. Mazu Networks
is backed by premier venture capital firms, including Greylock Partners,
Matrix Partners, Pilot House Ventures Group and StarVest Partners. Symantec
Corporation also is an investor in the company. Mazu is an IBM Business
Partner. Headquartered in Cambridge, Mass., Mazu also has locations in New
York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit
http://www.mazunetworks.com.
SOURCE Mazu Networks, Inc.
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Related links:
http://www.mazunetworks.com
CONTACT:
Karen Regan, +1-978-505-2457,
karen.regan@mazunetworks.com, or Carol Lee, +1-617-512-9794,
carol.lee@mazunetworks.com, both of Mazu Networks, Inc.
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