Check Point Completes Its Security Vision

The inclusion of Integrity, a product that secures internal network end point PCs, completes the plan Check Point announced last May for a unified security management platform. Integrity’s features will now be part of SmartCenter, a solution that combines management of the vendor’s perimeter, internal and Web security products into one console, according to Gene Manyak, product marketing manager at Check Point, Redwood City, Calif.

Manyak said the lack of a security “big picture” and policy setting can lead to security lapses resulting in attacks and outages. “SmartCenter addresses this problem by giving you the ability to update all end points with the latest information on threats and vulnerabilities, and provides a single interface,” Manyak said.

Having a centrally managed environment that will automatically dig down into the layers of the network and sift out the critical information and send alerts is crucial to protecting network infrastructure against current and future threats, said Bob Cohen, president and CEO of CG Atlantic, a New York-based security solution provider.

“With the layered security approach comes tons of information, and it’s easy for important information to fall between the cracks,” Cohen said.

SmartCenter includes an event analyzer feature that can be configured for managing event correlation across all layers of security in a network. Although this feature is optimized to work in the Check Point environment, it also works with other selected vendors’ products. “The idea is to make it as easy to deploy as possible,” Manyak said.

Cohen said this is one of the main selling points. “From a technical standpoint, Check Point is breaking down barriers and allowing integration with other products,” he said. “They’re essentially saying, ‘This might not be the best thing for us businesswise, but it’s something we have to do.’ ”

Check Point’s SmartCenter with Integrity is available now and priced initially at $37,000 for 1,000 seats.