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Web security gateways
PrODUCT NaMe
Secure
Computing’s
Webwasher
DeSCrIPTION
The upgraded Webwasher appliance features the company’s
SecureCache technology, which caches objects on a Web
page as well as the results of the most recent virus signature
scan for each object, for example. This means Webwasher
only has to scan an object the first time it is requested,
resulting in better caching performance, according to the
company. In addition to scanning each object for viruses,
Webwasher checks it against its TrustedSource integrated
reputation database before delivering it to the user from
the cache.
aDDITIONaL fea TUreS
Other new Web 2.0-based features
for Webwasher include Anti-Malware
for Web 2.0, the company’s intent
analysis technology that works
specifically to find new threats based
on spyware, zero-day blended threats
and targeted attacks.
PrICe
Webwasher starts at
US$3,995.
: status symbols
By Lee Rickwood
editor, PCWorld.ca
Hot tools to
cool you off
eSoft’s Threat Wall
Web Security
gateway appliance
ESoft has included in the new appliances its bimodal
scanning technology, which has proxy-based scanning for
URL filtering and malware detection along with real-time,
packet-based scanning that offers Web server and browser
security, instant messaging and peer-to-peer security, and
application-layer intrusion prevention, the company says.
Web infrastructure and application security is achieved
by scanning all Web-based traffic for signs of attacks
on servers, browsers, and applications. The appliance
combines signature-based scanning for known attacks,
with anomaly detection and heuristics to find new threats,
eSoft says. It also includes eSoft’s own reputation services
to protect users from visiting sites known to distribute
malware. The appliance automatically generates logs,
alarms and summary reports of threats.
Ties into Microsoft’s Active Directory,
which means administrators can
set policies regarding which Web
sites users can visit and when, on an
individual or group-by-group basis,
the company says. Detailed reports
can be generated that summarize
Web use. The appliance also includes
IM and P2P controls that
let companies limit the services
users can take advantage of.
Threat Wall Web
Security Gateway
starts at US$3,400
for an unlimited
number of users. In
addition, companies
can opt to add
eSoft’s antispam
module, sold
separately, to run on
the same appliance.
8e6 Technologies’
ProxyBlocker
Individuals on school and corporate networks eager
to circumvent Web-filter gateways in order to access
prohibited Web sites are known to be setting up Web-based
proxies and use them as a jump-off point. According to 8e6
Technologies, the ProxyBlocker appliance can identify use
of these so-called Web or circumvention proxies through
pattern-recognition technologies that don’t rely on the URL.
This proxy-blocking technology is
also available in 8e6 Technologies’
Internet filter appliance line for URL,
instant messaging and peer-to-peer
file filtering. ProxyBlocker is being
offered as a stand-alone product to
organizations that may have already
installed competitors’ Web-filtering
products, which may not be capable
of proxy-blocking.
ProxyBlocker
starts at US$2,500
for software,
plus US$1,500
to US$4,000 for
hard ware.
: editor’s picks
By Shane Schick
editor, Computer World Canada
sschick@itworldcanada.com
HP says its dc7800 has a “zero footprint” design on
it’s own, but even if you combine the Integrated
Work Center flat panel monitor stand, you’re
looking at a super-skinny device. You could say
that Apple did it first with the eMac, but this
is still a pretty cool PC. By “cool,” I actually
mean remote power management, which adds
an environmental incentive. Prices
haven’t been announced yet.
I’m still not sure
why Microsoft
invests in a hardware
division focused on
peripherals like mice, but
its Bluetooth 500 model has
some good ideas. Apart from its
wireless connection capabilties, it includes
an LED battery life indicator, an on/off button
and, best of all in my opinion, a back button.
Price: US$49.95
The term “mobile workstation” starts to mean
something when you cram in a 64-bit Intel Core
Duo Extreme Edition processor, like Dell’s Precision
X7900 does. Also inside: solid state and encrypted
hard drives, a 17-inch WXGA+ monitor, 802.11n
support and Dual-Channel3 memory with 36-bit
addressing, which allows use of all 4GB of
system memory with a 64-bit OS.
A base configuration starts at
$2,249.99.
n JUST hOW COOL are yOU?
No, this is not a question about
your social status — it’s about your
temperature, and in particular, the
temperature of your lap when using
a laptop PC.
Mobile computer users, commuters, students in the classroom and
hotspot surfers have all at some time
felt the heat.
The heat build-up and transfer can
be extreme, as we know — the fire
hazard is usually a battery-related
issue, but powerful graphics cards and
other accessories mean that heat dissipation from even normally-operating
notebooks can be significant.
So a cool new product category has
opened up — laptop supports and
cooling stands. Passive or powered
solutions for improved comfort and
ergonomic support of portable PC
users are now available.
Some simple, yet effective, devices
are from Lap Works, for example. Its
Laptop Desk is a lightweight (about
a pound) folding plastic stand, with
airholes for ventilation and heat
dissipation; small rubber feet prevent
slippage. Folded up, it could easily
fit in a notebook case, but open, it’s
designed to create a comfortable work
surface laid across your lap. There’s
a slight give to the plastic when so
positioned, and some men may find its
reach is not quite wide enough.
Laptop coolers have taken the next
step, by building in small fans to help
heat escape from the notebook form.
The COOLDock from the Bad Back
Store, for example, has two fans,
powered from a notebook via USB. The
dock also has extra USB ports, so you
can connect peripherals fairly easily.
The fan’s operation is reasonably quiet,
especially in the context of a busy work
environment or crowded café, but those
used to computing in near total silence
will notice some noise.
You’ll want too check out a number
of such devices before making a purchase, but once you do, your coolness
factor will definitely increase.
Rickwood is Web Editor at PCWorld.
ca, a trusted online source of news and
reviews of the latest personal computing and consumer electronics products.
