Secure Passage Releases FireMon 3.5 With Juniper Networks NetScreen Rule Usage Support


KANSAS CITY, MO--(Marketwire - December 17, 2007) - Secure Passage, the market leader in security operations management solutions, today released FireMon 3.5 with Rule Usage Analysis support for Juniper Networks NetScreen devices. The latest release of FireMon, Secure Passage's security device management software, further enables organizations to improve network security by better managing their security environments.

Rule Usage Analysis, a showcase feature of FireMon, identifies the most-used, least-used and unused rules and objects in the context of a security policy. Additionally, Rule Usage Analysis pinpoints the date and time that each rule, network object and service was hit.

For FireMon customers using NetScreen devices, the statistics and detailed usage information are not simply beneficial, but necessary, according to Niccolo Alicandri, Founder and Vice President of Sales for CipherTechs, Inc. "Rule Usage Analysis is a feature needed by nearly all organizations using Juniper's NetScreen technology. Over time, security policies can grow complicated and unmanageable. Rule Usage Analysis identifies unnecessary complexity and inefficiency in the rule base that could render the security policy less effective. This information is exactly what administrators need to simplify rule bases and optimize their security policies. The result of this analysis and optimization is a more efficient and manageable device that improves network security."

Jody Brazil, EVP & CTO of Secure Passage, agreed and noted another specific advantage of Rule Usage Analysis. "Through high-speed, complex analysis, FireMon identifies inactive rules and objects that could allow unauthorized access through the firewall and decrease device efficiency. With the release of FireMon 3.5, our customers using NetScreen devices can remove inactive rules and objects from a policy, improving the security and manageability of their security devices."

Rule Usage Analysis is the foundation for FireMon's Policy Optimization capability, which seeks to shorten and simplify rule bases in security policies for better device performance and security. Rule Usage Analysis is also part of a FireMon feature list that includes Change Control, Compliance, and Configuration Management. FireMon supports Check Point, Cisco, Nokia, Juniper Networks NetScreen, and Crossbeam network security devices. Secure Passage plans to extend FireMon's Rule Usage Analysis feature to other major firewall manufacturers in the coming months.

About Secure Passage

Based in Kansas City, MO, Secure Passage is an industry-leading software provider focused on developing security applications and providing innovative security solutions to some of world's largest IT organizations. Its flagship product, FireMon, is a Security Operations Management solution that provides security professionals with visibility into their networks and the tools to control change. FireMon observes network security devices for change, identifies the details of change, analyzes the impact of change on expected device behavior, and optimizes security policies for greater effectiveness. For more information, visit www.securepassage.com.

About CipherTechs

CipherTechs, Inc. is a privately held information security services provider based in New York, NY focused on delivering security solutions for businesses harnessing the power of Internet communications. CipherTechs, Inc.'s core of expertise includes the audit, design and implementation of information security solutions in areas of IP networking, firewalls, application security, risk assessment, traffic monitoring, encryption, redundancy and strong authentication. For more information, visit www.ciphertechs.com.

Contact Information: Contact: Heather Surber Communications Manager Secure Passage, LLC Voice: (816) 421-1901 Fax: (816) 421-1938