February 26, 2004 | Comments: (0)
RSA now stands for Rain, Alcohol, and Security
Apparently last night's 'last call for alcohol' was confused by many as 'last call for RSA,' because the show floor is pretty quiet. A barren floor is good for placing phone calls, staying out of the rain, but it's even better for catching up with vendors. So that is what I did.
This morning I met with Kip McClanahan, CEO of TippingPoint, a company that put a lot of empha$i$ on this show. He told me the show has been a success and felt it was the perfect opportunity for his company to spread its wings. He explained that 2004 is surely going to be the year that intrusion prevention systems, reach, well, the tipping point. As he suggested, a quick glance at the company's balance sheet reveals just that- sales are picking up. $2.1 million of the $3.0 million in revenue reported in the past nine months came in the last quarter alone.
I also met up with Purnima Padmanabhan, director of product management at Marimba. Marimba is here at the show with its new partner- Shavlik Technologies. Marimba has OEMed Shavlik's automated patch assessment and deployment technology and has integrated it into its Marimba Security Patch Management product. Purnima explained patch management is hot too and that the company is looking to work with companies like ArcSight, netForensics, and HighTower Software, which make security management software that collects data from vulnerability assessment tools and device logs, then analyzes and presents remedies to found problems.
Keeping my focus broad, I just swung by and talked to the guys at PostX. This week they introduced a solution to help prevent phishing (worst term ever) and spoofing. Shawn Eldridge and Michael Weir talked about this product, Trusted Dialogue, explaining messages can be digitally signed and then delivered. Those with the client-side software piece will receive the email in any email application, including Hotmail and Yahoo, along with a green, yellow, and red lights indicating the safety factor of said email. They explained this is done by using a pattern matching technology that they are continually evolving. In fact, they'll have a new version by the end of the second quarter. The company is not alone. At DEMO earlier this month, Voltage Security debuted an IM encryption product.
Finally, I met with Kevin Rowney, CTO of Vontu. We talked insider threat and I'll post a Q&A with him sometime next week. As for his impression of the show- he said at times it reminded him of 1999. And we all know 99 was a great year.
Oh, and my impressions of the show. Overall it was pretty good. Lots of compa-nies present, many with new technologies. All the vendors I talked to were pleased with the attendance and loved the fact it was sold out. The few keynotes I attended were pretty dry, especially Gates'. But hey, if you're the richest man in America ten years running, you're permitted to be boring.
(Written by Scott Tyler Shafer)
Posted by Cathleen Moore on February 26, 2004 04:24 PM
February 20, 2004 | Comments: (0)
Microsoft this week proposed another Web services specification for industry adoption, WS-Discovery, and Sun Microsystems again accused Microsoft of trying to ram its own proposals down everyone's throat.
Yes, Microsoft can seem a bit overbearing by putting out specifications for the industry without first going to an industry standards body.
So why does Microsoft engage in this surly behavior? The answer is similar to why the New York Yankees buy up whatever players the team wants: Because they can.
Microsoft is using its power to try to set the industry on a course in Web services that has Microsoft leading the pack. WS-Discovery is intended to extend Web services to devices. Sun says its JXTA technology already has addressed this need.
Previously, Sun has accused Microsoft of trying to impose Web services specifications such as BPEL4WS (Business Process Execution Language for Web Services) on the industry. That proposal from Microsoft, IBM and BEA gathered steam while a similar Sun plan, Web Services Choreography Interface (WSCI), withered.
Like it or not for Sun, Microsoft has the mass to lead in areas where it wants to, such as Web services. Microsoft says it does plan to eventually bring WS-Discovery to an industry standards group for its consideration.
Sun, though, will have to realize why Microsoft officials grab the steering wheel in efforts like this: Because they can.
Posted by Paul Krill on February 20, 2004 01:33 PM
February 20, 2004 | Comments: (0)
Oracle's proposed acquisition of PeopleSoft too good to turn down
The deal will go through because the offer is just too good for it not to, but that doesn't mean it will be a good thing for customers.
By now the topic of Oracle acquiring PeopleSoft has the industry more or less reduced to wait-and-see mode, but I had an interesting discussion with SAS Institute's CEO and president Dr. Jim Goodnight, who took something of a contrarian's view on the Oracle-PeopleSoft acquisition.
"The merger probably will happen at the price Oracle has offered. It's a $4 premium over the closing stock price," Goodnight said.
What about the egos at play? PeopleSoft CEO Craig Conway seems determined not to lose to Larry Ellison.
"Craig has to be concerned about his stockholders," Goodnight explained.
The deal would, in fact, be a boon to stockholders, at least in the short-term, but the general consensus is that it would be negative for PeopleSoft customers, who likely will be forced to migrate to Oracle applications more quickly than they might prefer.
And, as PeopleSoft CTO Rick Berquist pointed out to me in an interview earlier this year, the proposed acquisition has yet to be approved by several government bodies in the U.S. and abroad.
For some reason, I can't find my crystal ball right now, so I'll refrain from chiming in with my own personal prediction of what will happen, but we'll be covering it either way.
Posted by Tom Sullivan on February 20, 2004 08:33 AM
February 11, 2004 | Comments: (0)
Adware hits AOL instant messenger
My colleague, Paul Roberts at IDG News Service has posted a story about the blog I wrote earlier about a possible virus affecting AOL IM. Paul's story.
So it is not a security threat, but really an annoyance. Just don't download any Osama games today. Do work instead. ;)
Here is the story. Some marketing company has devised a program that you must download from its site to play the said game. When you download it, you are asked to agree to conditions. One of the conditions states something to the effect that you agree to let the program send a link to those on your AOL Buddy List. Brilliant, huh?
Here is the condition: Services; Modifications to Your Instant Messaging Client. The Software provides you the opportunity to access Content for no charge. In return for the right to access this Content, you acknowledge and agree that the Software contains additional software products provided to PSD Tools by its suppliers which will periodically deliver additional Content such as, but not limited to, advertisements and promotional messages to your Computer and programs that may alter your home page to offer you Content. In addition, the Software will interoperate with your current instant messaging client so as to permit the automatic sending of advertising messages originating from your Computer to your contact or "buddy" list regarding Content offered by PSD Tools or its suppliers. If you desire to stop this activity, you may elect to stop the messages by navigating to the "buddylinks.net" entry in your "Start Menu," selecting the "buddylinks.net Configuration" item, and unchecking the appropriate option. You may also refer to PSD Tools' Web site at http://www.psdtools.com for an uninstaller.
To add some color, expect to see more adware over instant messaging. According to Rahul Abhyankar, director of product management at FaceTime, this adware incident only appears to send out one message to the contact list, as agreed upon in the terms that precede the launch of the program.
Craig Scmugar at McAfee Avert explained this is not the first known 'viral marketing' program. He said FreindGreeting appeared last October via email, but this adware is the first to be spread initially over instant messaging.
Scmugar did not rule out that someday unsuspecting users would receive a link that would install a more malicious program in the background that exploits known flaws in browsers or maybe even unknown flaws in instant messaging.
As a plug for us, our Feb. 23 issue will look more closely at IM products designed specifically for the enterprise.
Posted by Scott Tyler Shafer on February 11, 2004 12:06 PM
February 11, 2004 | Comments: (0)
Worm spreading through AOL IM?
Nothing is confirmed as of yet, but reports are circulating that a virus is affecting AOL instant messaging users.
According to multiple friends of mine, a message from a contact on your buddy list pops up saying- "check this out..." followed by a link with the following domain- wgutv.com. Once the link is clicked a game appears where you can shoot a cartoon character of Osama Bin Laden or Saddam Hussein. From there the worm apparently hijacks your contact list and sends the same URL out to all of those on that list.
I'm reporting this now and hope to have more complete story as soon as possible. So for now, don't click a URL that says "check this out...."
Posted by Scott Tyler Shafer on February 11, 2004 11:05 AM
February 11, 2004 | Comments: (0)
In a forthcoming release of its Tablet PC operating system, Microsoft is working to improve its pen and ink functionality.
Microsoft, in fact, will send out to beta testers Release Candidate 1 of a new version of Windows for its Tablet PC by the end of March, with an eye toward delivering the finished product by late May or Early June.
The new version, tentatively called the Tablet PC Edition 2004, will feature much improved integration between pen and ink capabilities. Company officials said they are working to make the pen a more "natural" experience for users.
Microsoft will also add more Web support for making it easier for developers to create Web-enabled applications for the Tablet PC.
N.B. I posted this for editor at large Ed Scannell, who reported live from Microsoft headquarters in Redmond, Wash.
Posted by Tom Sullivan on February 11, 2004 06:15 AM
February 05, 2004 | Comments: (0)
First stop Munich, next stop Bejing
The domino theory never worked out in geopolitics but it might have a rebirth in operating systems. Witness the switch from 14,000 Windows desktops and servers to Linux desktop and servers by the City of Munich.
Next stop China.
I have it on good authority, as good as these rumors can get, that certain high government officials in China are "promoting" the Linux OS and Linux on the desktop over Windows, for reasons of cost, i.e., licensing fees and security.
Yes, Microsoft promised to open up 95% of Windows source code to the Chinese government to reassure officials that their product is not a threat to their national security but it is the other 5% China is concerned about.
My source said, "Microsoft has a backdoor and China has great concern."
Everyone pays lip service to the fact that China is a huge market but when it is put into numbers you can really appreciate the scope of that market.
For example, if you were going after the education market, China has about 200,00 schools, K through 12.
By 2010 estimates are that the Chinese market for PCs will grow at a rate of 50 million per year, bigger than the U.S. and Europe.
By 2025 estimates say there should be 1 billion PCs installed in China. Imagine if most of them were Linux desktops? Microsoft would be considered a company that sells into a niche market. The niche market being the U.S. and Europe.
Posted by Ephraim Schwartz on February 5, 2004 02:50 PM
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