The Mobile Computing Challenge
Napera provides network security for your mobile business
With today’s mobile workforce, a perimeter firewall is just the first step to keep out malware, unknown computers and other threats. Users expect to have network access from everywhere, and laptops, wireless hotspots, teleworking and remote offices are now the norm rather than the exception. Even non-employees require basic access. It’s no longer enough to provide guests with coffee and a rest room, they also want to go online or print documents while in your office.
While firewalls guard the entry to the network, new solutions are needed to address laptop computers moving in and out of the corporate network, bringing unknown threats with them.
Consider the following scenarios:
- A salesperson brings his laptop into the office after a week of using multiple wireless hotspots. What state is his computer in?
- A client is collaborating with your team in the conference room, and needs Internet and printer access. How do you keep them working without exposing your network?
- A company executive takes her computer home on weekends and allows her children to play Internet games and send messages to friends. Is her computer still secure?
- Auditors are working in your finance department, and want to plug in their laptops. What could be lurking on those computers?
There are multiple network and security solutions that address part of the problem, such as anti-virus, anti-spyware, firewalls, SSL VPNs, and many others. These are all important pieces of a layered defense approach to security. What’s missing from these disparate solutions is the ability to make sure all these technologies are enabled, updated and working together. Traditional security solutions do not provide an endpoint assessment to ensure that every computer accessing your network is healthy and up to date, while also enforcing identity and allowing controlled guest access.
Network access control solutions have provided some answers to this challenge in the large enterprise, but most products in the market are bring complexity, high costs and heavy infrastructure with them. Napera is the first network access control solution built from the ground up for small and medium sized enterprises. Napera’s NAC appliances and Web-based management work together to control and enforce device health, identity, and guest access.