Trend Micro steps up messaging security

Updates InterScan and ScanMail product ranges

Anti virus and content security specialist Trend Micro has made a raft of upgrades to its InterScan range of products and ScanMail solution for Microsoft Exchange, and encouraged customers to invest in a layered approach to security.

The firms InterScan Messaging Security Suite, Appliance, and a new hosted service all feature improved protection from image-based spam. They feature three-layers of protection; Network Reputation Services block the majority of unwanted emails from known spam sources and can dynamically identify new spam and phishing sources.

Trend's IP profiler technology then blocks more spam at the connection layer, and features a firewall to block DHAs and bounce mail attacks, according to the firm's product marketing manager Christine Drake.

The final component is a composite engine which can filter phishing emails at the gateway and includes anti-image-based spam technology.

Manageability has also been improved with simplified configuration and a single web-based management console to administer policies and quarantines regardless of the number of servers in an organisation.

ScanMail for Microsoft Exchange 8.0, meanwhile, provides native 64 bit support and integrates with Microsoft Operations Manager and the Outlook junk mail folder.

Together the releases support Trend’s message that firms need to take a layered approach to security.

“We’re promoting the idea you need two levels of email security; at the gateway to stop the flood of internet threats bringing down the network altogether, and mail server security, which often gets downplayed,” explained Drake. “We’re also saying web security is important to ensure comprehensive messaging security.”

To this end, she added, Trend technology scans for reputation of URLs embedded in emails which may direct users to phishing sites, as well as scanning webmail messages for viruses and blocking downloads of keylogging Trojans.

Andrew Kellett of analyst Butler Group said it is increasingly important for firms to buy from vendors which offer protection for both web and email protocols.

"The unified threat management approach is the right one for enterprise organisations," he added. "Firms are also looking beyond this to what's going out of an organisation – the big headlines this year will come from data leakage."

Richi Jennings of Ferris Research added that the new hosted service would appeal to firms across the board because it takes the pain out of managing the messaging security environment internally.