-- Role-Aware Secure Campus Access Control: Anytime, anywhere access to
the network is determined by an individual's role in the company. This
"role aware" network helps enforce identity-based security policies
pervasively across the network regardless of the network access method or
device (wired, wireless, mobile, laptop, printer).
-- Converged Policy Framework: Various authentication mechanics are
converged into a single central policy engine that dynamically communicates
across the entire switch infrastructure. This framework addresses the
information technology (IT) challenge of managing policies consistently
across the network by greatly simplifying the management of identity
policies over disparate authentication methods.
-- Pervasive Integrity and Confidentiality: Helps maintain the integrity
and confidentiality of data as it moves through all points in the network.
This safeguards against data leakage, supports regulatory requirements and
increases the privacy of the network itself.
"Understanding which users do what and where, on networks and on
applications, is a key component of the compliance strategy of virtually
every enterprise. Doing so requires implementing a security architecture
based on the roles and identities of users. In our recent benchmark on
security and information protection, enterprise IT executives cited Cisco
as the top strategic security vendor relied on to help with these and other
security initiatives," said Andreas M. Antonopoulos, senior vice president
and founding partner of Nemertes Research.
Standards and Industry Interoperability
Cisco is committed to working with industry leaders for greater
interoperability with other devices in the network. Cisco and Intel
announced a shared commitment to support the IEEE 802.1AE standard that
helps the network intelligently prioritize data in alignment with business
objectives while preserving the integrity of the encrypted data.
Cisco is also pleased to announce that Intel has joined those supporting
the Cisco approach that enables IEEE 802.1AE-based components to
communicate and negotiate the encryption of data, while preserving the full
range of network-based services. This will enhance interoperability
between Cisco TrustSec capable switches and Intel® Ethernet controllers
that support the IEEE 802.1AE standard. Cisco also announced that Ixia, a
global provider of Internet Protocol (IP)-performance test systems, will
support IEEE 802.1AE encrypted line cards in their Ixia test equipment so
that customers may now test with Cisco TrustSec capable switches.
"Communication between devices that support the IEEE 802.1AE standard for
encryption and integrity is beneficial for enterprisewide deployment," said
Pat Gelsinger, senior vice president and general manger of Intel Corp.'s
Digital Enterprise Group. "Intel will support IEEE 802.1AE-based secure
connectivity for our customers in its upcoming Intel Ethernet controllers,
and we will be working with Cisco to ensure interoperability of this
capability with Cisco switches."
Increased Regulatory Compliance
Regulatory compliance requires enterprises to permit or deny users access
to information and applications based on the privileges they are assigned,
be they employee, contractor or guest. With Cisco TrustSec, enterprises
can secure access control based on the identity attributes of users and
their role within the organization. It also helps protect investments by
using existing hardware capabilities within Cisco Catalyst® switches.
"I see tremendous value in the Cisco TrustSec architecture for providing a
scalable topology independent of network access technology and coupled with
Layer 2 confidentiality and integrity. This has the potential to provide
us with a solution to help address the de-perimeterization and regulatory
compliance," said Uwe Fischer, information security officer of E.ON.
Pervasive Identity-Enabled Networking:
Cisco TrustSec creates a highly secure identity-enabled network by
distributing admission control and access control mechanisms throughout the
network. These mechanisms reduce the complex, manual and error-prone
nature of policy enforcement, thereby improving operational efficiency.
For the end user, Cisco TrustSec provides a consistent experience
regardless of the network access method while also providing optional data
privacy across new and legacy applications.
Expected Availability
Cisco TrustSec functionality is scheduled to be available across the Cisco
switching platforms throughout the next 18 months beginning in the first
quarter of 2008. For more information on Cisco TrustSec, visit
www.cisco.com/go/switchsecurity.
About Cisco Systems
Cisco (Contact Information: Media Contact: Linda Horiuchi Cisco 408-853-5464 lhoriuch@cisco.com Industry Analyst Contact: Rebecca Noriega Cisco 408-853-5819 rnoriega@cisco.com Investor Relations Contact: Marisa Ross Cisco 408 527-9830 mariross@cisco.com