Mirage Networks Announces Issuance of U.S. Patent for Network Access Control Capability.

Patent Covers Authentication and Quarantining of Endpoints by Manipulating Address Resolution Traffic

AUSTIN, Texas -- Mirage Networks[R] announced today that U.S. patent number 7,124,197 has been issued for Mirage's Network Access Control (NAC) technology. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has afforded protection of Mirage's capability using a peer-based security model for network access control. The patent's claims cover methods and apparatuses to track and manipulate address resolution traffic to enforce authentication checks prior to allowing access to a local network segment, and to quarantine endpoints that fail the checks.

"We believe Mirage is a 'must-have' application for all organizations that seek to maintain an accessible, available network," said Brett Childress, director of IT infrastructure, National Instruments. "Mirage fit our needs perfectly by giving us an agentless, hardware agnostic and behavior-based appliance that stops rapidly propagating threats on day zero. The awarding of this patent reinforces our decision to go with Mirage."

While this is the first patent awarded to Mirage Networks by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Mirage has 10 other NAC patents pending. The pending applications cover the use of network protocols to detect and defend networks against pre- and post-admission threats, including detection of endpoints that are propagating threats, switch-agnostic enforcement of offending endpoints, and the detection of wireless network access.

The technology embodied in Mirage's approved and pending patent applications is already deployed at hundreds of customers worldwide.

"Since its inception, Mirage Networks has consistently delivered solutions that approach the challenges of network security from an innovative perspective," said Jon Oltsik, senior analyst for information security, Enterprise Strategy Group. "IT professionals need security solutions that can be configured and deployed with minimum network disruption and with minimal effort. Mirage's approach addresses these needs and the patent grant confirms that Mirage's approach is not only innovative, it is also unique in the industry in its ability to provide effective endpoint control."

"The patent underscores Mirage Networks' unique approach to enforcing device authentication on entry into a network," said Grant Hartline, chief technology officer, Mirage Networks. "While other solutions conduct authentication using agents, in-line devices, or DHCP servers, Mirage's patented out-of-band solution enforces authentication for all endpoint types connecting to the network without introducing a single point of failure, and without lengthy agent deployments. It simply enforces access control for all managed, unmanaged and rogue devices."

About Mirage Networks

Mirage Networks, Inc. is the leading provider of network access control (NAC) solutions, including both pre- and post-admission security. The company's patented technology gives organizations control over unknown, out-of-policy, and infected devices resulting in increased network uptime, policy compliance and reduced operational costs. Mirage's NAC appliances work in all network environments, deploy out-of-band and require neither signatures nor agents to enforce policies and terminate zero-day threats. Based in Austin, Texas, Mirage Networks' Endpoint Control is a consistent winner of industry awards and recognition. Learn more at http://www.miragenetworks.com.

(C)2006, Mirage Networks, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide. Mirage Networks, its product and program names and design marks are trademarks of Mirage Networks, Inc.