SpheriQ update.

SpheriQ's new features enable organisations both to enforce internal policies and meet external regulatory demands. It pre-filters and sorts inbound and outbound emails before archiving; applies selective policies for specific groups and individuals within an organisation; and offers search and reporting tools.

Existing SpheriQ functionality protects users from spare and other unsolicited and inappropriate content. It also filters according to attachment file type, size and other parameters. Individual attachments can be identified and 'hashed' to enforce specific policies and business requirements. The system also logs every mail crossing the customer's network and provides an on-line search facility.

The new compliance release adds an "Auditor" role with exclusive access to data relating to individual users. It also enhances the overall audit capability across the entire system. It also adds a 'Personal WebMail" facility so that employees can separate business and private email, with equal protection for both but without audit scrutiny of the latter. By identifying emails as being business or personal, effective auditing and archiving can be enforced without impinging fights to individual privacy. A selective, searchable archive is the final component of the compliance release.

Although Sarbanes-Oxley does not mandate specific controls for email systems it does address the availability, integrity and preservation of any information that is material to the act--often material stored or transmitted via email. Effective archive and search tools are essential to comply with this aspect of the Act. Basel 11 also demands high-level controls over the processing, transmission and storage of information, which has significant implications for the way financial services organisations in Europe manage their email systems.

To ensure data integrity, SpheriQ's data centres are built to the stringent security standards demanded by the banking sector to meet Basel 11 requirements, They include layered security, monitoring, and audited access to data, to ensure confidentiality and integrity of all mail content. A scalable archiving service is also offered which takes pre-filtered email, stores it for up to seven years, and makes it available to authorised users through a comprehensive on-line search engine.

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