Secure everything, everywhere

Amit Singh

We love our devices. Research firm IDC estimates that 686 million smartphones were sold in 2012 alone. Then there are the countless connected tablets, laptops and desktops; not to mention that products—from cars to copiers—that are connected devices, too. From a network perspective, it all adds up to a staggering number of endpoints.

Our relationship with our devices is deep, and getting deeper. But without access to data, the value of our devices is limited, if not eliminated. Whether business critical or frivolous fun, our mood quickly fades to frustration when we can’t access our data (as we punch ‘submit’ one more time when the screen doesn’t instantly change). The truth is, there’s a powerful three-way relationship that exists between our devices, our data, and ourselves. But without access to data, the relationship just doesn’t work.

Today, a business’s productivity is inextricably linked to the ability of its employees, partners, and customers to access and exchange data. And there is a straight line between productivity and profitability. But hackers also smell opportunity in this evolution. Businesses, of all sizes, are increasingly struggling to defend themselves from the explosive growth in security threats and cyber attacks.

Without significant advances in security technology, management and deployment strategies, the huge volume, form and sophistication of malware has the potential to inflict huge vulnerability on corporate network with catastrophic results. Scare mongering? Absolutely not. Last year alone one of the security solution providers identified nearly 16 million unique malware samples and is reporting around 44,000

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