Future trends in security - 3i survey

[InfoSec News <isn () c4i org>]

http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/55/23848.html

By John Leyden
Posted: 28/01/2002 at 17:15 GMT

When investment house 3i casts its eye over the future development of
Internet security the market takes note.

After all 3i is a significant stakeholder in the industry and is in an
interesting position to gauge trends in the market.

So it was with interest that we went along last Wednesday night to
hear about 3i's white paper on e-business security, which was based on
a survey conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) involving
the CEOs of 25 e-security suppliers.

Some of the findings of the survey, particularly that two thirds of
those esecurity companies interviewed thought the market would be
owned by five brands or less in just three years, proved controversial
- especially to the seven smaller firms 3i had invited to the launch.

Representatives (with only one CEO present) from 3i clients, including
integrator Articon Integralis, application security firm Kavado and
digital rights management vendor Sealed Media, downplayed the idea of
rapid industry consolidation.

Baltimore Technologies and Network Associates tried this strategy and
its been judged a failure, they opined. The view was that there may
well be a shakeout in the industry, which is still immature, and a
growth of dominant players in integration and services but the
creation of security monoliths isn't likely, and probably wouldn't
work.

Ian McKenzie, a marketing exec at integrator Viastorm, summed up the
feelings of the panel when he said "when a large firm acquires a best
in breed player it doesn't stay that way for long".

Far less controversially, the white paper also said the vendors
surveyed are betting on authentication and administration, managed
services and management tools as growth areas in the security market.  
Network security tools (such as firewalls) will take a lesser share of
an increasing pie (IDC expect the network security market will be
worth $8bn by 2003).

We say this finding was less controversial but it has to be recorded
that the digital rights management people were doing a lot on the
night to talk up the potential of their technology.

Financial services and telecoms are seen as the greatest potential
markets for growth but 3i's white paper notes that telecoms lags
behind financial services and government in security awareness, "in
spite of the impact that 3G may have on the ability to access the
Internet".

Russ Cummings, technology group director at 3i, said this negative
view reflected the perception that although carriers internal systems
are made secure, the security of services provided to the public often
have their shortcomings.

Richard Barber, development manager at security provider Articon
Integralis, said telcos fail to take security seriously until hit by
hackers.

Telcos are more used to operating circuit-switched technology and IP
skills - particularly related to security - may be lacking as service
providers face unfamiliar or emerging risks, like denial of service
attacks against mobile networks, he added.



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