Sygate outperforms Symantec in independent test of enterprise security solutions.

Sygate Technologies has reported that Sygate Secure Enterprise 3.0 outperformed Symantec's Client Security 2.0 in a comparison test conducted by KeyLabs. Sygate Secure Enterprise is the only enterprise solution that enables organizations to regain control of network security, reduce costs and ensure compliance by automating the enforcement of best practices and business policies. In order to highlight the strength and cost-effectiveness of its endpoint security solution, Sygate elected to have KeyLabs, a renowned independent testing laboratory, test the Sygate solution against the competitive offering from Symantec, the world leader in enterprise security. KeyLabs compared the two vendors' endpoint security products, evaluating the features and functionality that enable each product to enforce enterprise security policies and integrate with enterprise networks and systems. After completing its tests, KeyLabs gave Sygate a significantly higher ranking than Symantec in all categories tested, with Symantec not ranking at all in the policy enforcement category. The full test report is available at www.keylabs.com/results/sygate/301002.shtml.

The KeyLabs report summarizes that the greatest disparity between the two vendors' products is in the area of policy enforcement, a critical component of enterprise security strategy. Security policy enforcement refers to the ability of organizations to define and enforce what users and devices are able to do, in order to prevent security breaches and unintentional or malicious attacks--such as the recent SQL Slammer worm. Sygate protects against attacks such as the SQL Slammer worm by challenging each device as it gets on the network, enforcing that necessary patches are applied. This ensures that the network remains secure, and that users on the network are compliant with security policy at all times.

"Our success has shown that today's large enterprises are increasingly concerned about endpoint security; all too often, the inability to control the actions and behaviors of end users across an entire organization results in the breakdown of its security," said John De Santis, CEO of Sygate Technologies. "The market has responded to this dilemma by trying to retrofit or repackage existing solutions. Sygate took a more strategic approach and came to market with a product geared exclusively toward automating policies that enforce safe behavior, and eliminating threats and vulnerabilities as they arise. We are delighted that Sygate Secure Enterprise rated so strongly in the KeyLabs comparison test, as it reinforces the value we deliver to our enterprise customers--that we enable companies to regain control of their network security by automating the enforcement of best practices and business policies throughout the organization."

The comparison testing was conducted at KeyLabs' state-of-the-art facility in Lindon, Utah. The basic test scenario involved configuring the environment with each feature enabled and then disabling the features one at a time to see if the products performed as expected. The three basic functions evaluated were virus protection, firewall, and intrusion prevention. Each product was evaluated in three key areas: security engine, enterprise management, and policy enforcement.

"The results clearly show that not all products in this market are equal. Sygate's scores were consistently higher than Symantec's and with few exceptions, Symantec did not support the same features," said Rich Corbridge, Senior Test Engineer, KeyLabs. "Sygate's Secure Enterprise 3.0 includes a much richer and comprehensive enterprise management feature set, which leads to greater functionality in a real-world environment. The testing report concludes that Sygate's product is particularly well suited for large and technically complex enterprises in need of an endpoint security solution."

Sygate Secure Enterprise 3.0 is differentiated by its highly scalable, multi-tier architecture, which combines strong endpoint security measures with distributed policy enforcement and automated security information management. Specifically designed to meet the needs of global organizations, it allows for large-scale, rapid deployments. Sygate Secure Enterprise 3.0 ensures only computing devices with up-to-date anti-virus, firewall, intrusion detection system, and software patches are connected to corporate data. In addition, only approved software applications are able to run in a Sygate-secured environment. With agents on every endpoint and access point on the network, the only users who can access corporate data are those deemed trustworthy by predetermined corporate security policies.

KeyLabs, a DBA of Lab Acquisition Corp., is the IT industry's premier technology assurance solution provider. Lab Acquisition Corp. of Lindon formally re-acquired the assets of KeyLabs from Exodus Communications in September 2001. Since its inception in 1996, KeyLabs has led the testing industry in the development of a full suite of custom network testing services that includes e-commerce stress and security testing, SAN testing, performance analysis, scalability analysis, and proof-of-concept testing. In addition, KeyLabs develops and manages industry certification programs for software and hardware vendors, and assists corporations needing to validate technologies in large-scale environments. KeyLabs is a privately owned company.