Trend centrally manages anti-virus tools

Trend Micro Inc is offering simplified management and lower virus control costs with the introduction of its Virus Control System (VCS) solution. This marks the company's expansion of its services to provide central management of cross-platform anti-virus software on a network.

"Many enterprises are operating in a heterogeneous computing environment with a mix of computer and network products running on multiple platforms. Different departments in an enterprise might have installed a mix of branded anti-virus software. Our VCS allows enterprise administrators to centrally manage their anti-virus products such as single-point update of virus pattern files and detection of virus," said Thomas Kwong, marketing manager of Trend Micro.

"Complementing the introduction of VCS, we've set up a VCS center in the Philippines which offers round-the-clock backup and support," he added.

Research company Gartner Group reports that 75 percent of the total cost of virus management is incurred after initial product selection, implementation and awareness-building. This means that staff are spending a disproportionate amount of time managing virus crises than the initial investment in the anti-virus software warrants.

Designed for large enterprises, VCS enables administrators to configure, monitor, and maintain cross-platform anti-virus software from a single console. Enterprises can improve and simplify virus control, and thereby reducing overall virus protection costs.

"In addition to Trend products, VCS also manages third-party anti-virus software, but right now it can only check the configurations of third-party products," Anthony Fung, a technical specialist with the company, said.

VCS is installed on a Win NT server running Win NT 4.0 and Internet Information Server. Working as the central Web-based console, the VCS server can be accessed through a standard Internet browser from any machine. From the central console, administrators can centrally configure and update anti-virus products installed across a network, as well as generate reports and receive alerts.

VCS communicates with anti-virus products installed on servers through VCS Agents. The Agents are the linking software that connects anti-virus servers found on the network with VCS console. The Agent Install program first detects which servers have anti-virus software installed, then uses 'push' technology to copy the Agent software corresponding to the detected software to the server where it resides. The Agent registers every anti-virus software with the VCS.

Trend VCS complies with LDAP standards and supports the Netscape implementation of LDAP directory service which stores critical information, including user and group information. VCS collects information on virus events from across a network and stores the information in a code-based central database. The database enables administrators to analyze virus threats to their enterprises.

The VCS center identifies and analyzes new viruses whenever they occur, and updates virus pattern files frequently. Up-to-date virus pattern files are automatically delivered to the designated servers in an enterprise directly from Trend's Web site.

Pattern files can also be updated manually. Administrators can be notified of virus events via SNMP trap, e-mail or Win NT event logging. If there is a possible virus crisis, administrators can specify to be further notified by paging.

Activity log files are created and viewed from a central console to keep track of virus activity wherever it occurs, such as what viruses were found in e-mail, FTP and HTTP traffic, and their dates of occurrence.

All Trend's anti-virus software is under the management of VCS, including ServerProtect for Win NT and NetWare, ScanMail for Microsoft Exchange, ScanMail for Lotus Notes, PC-cillin, InterScan VirusWall for Win NT and Solaris. They offer virus control for Internet gateway, e-mail and groupware systems, servers, desktops and remote sites on various platforms.

The latest releases of Trend's products are ScanMail for Microsoft Exchange 2.0 and Microsoft Mail 1.0. A new feature of ScanMail for Exchange 2.0 is remote installation. The software can be deployed and managed from a single point across any number of servers, using a remote Web browser.

ScanMail for Microsoft Mail 1.0 is the first Trend's virus control software for Microsoft Mail. It scans and cleans files attached to e-mail messages in real time; detects and removes known and unknown macro viruses; automatically installs virus protection on workstations from the Mail server; and downloads virus pattern updates via the Internet.

Slated for availability by end of May, VCS may be introduced as a product and a service with online backup and support from the company's center in the Philippines.

Trend recently announced a strategic alliance with Check Point Software Technologies Ltd whereby Trend becomes a member of the latter's OPSEC (Open Platform for Secure Enterprise Connectivity) Alliance. Trend will integrate several of its products with Check Point's offerings, including Check Point's FireWall-1. Its first implementation of the OPSEC Content Vectoring Protocol will be in InterScan VirusWall 2.6 for Sun Solaris.