IP Products

Platform evolution

by Mark Rowe

The evolution of technology platforms – what does this mean for businesses? writes Wieland Alge, pictured, VP and general manager for EMEA, Barracuda Networks.

IDC recently released a report on the battles for dominance and survival on the ‘third platform’ of technology, which indicates the significance of this area of technology. The ‘third platform’ is the latest step in the evolution of technology, and has had a big impact on the way we think about technology and the way in which we work. As a result, there will need to be changes in the way IT professionals address security within their organisations in order to ensure that changing behaviour does not introduce vulnerability.

What is the third platform?

To go back to basics…technology started with the ‘first platform’; mainframe and terminal technology for example, computer hardware. This platform then supports what is referred to as the ‘second platform’, such as LAN/internet and operating systems. Then, comes the exciting layer, the ‘third platform’. This contains the latest concepts in technology such as cloud, mobile technologies, big data and social technology. It is supported by the ‘second platform’ and is also where many new, emerging technologies will be situated.

Changing attitudes

Until very recently, IT was defined by infrastructure: servers, computing power, storage and capacity, networks and bandwidth. Back then, we were asking ourselves how we could use existing technology for what we needed. However, with the advent of the rapidly changing ‘third platform’, the question now is “what technology can we implement to achieve what we need?” The biggest thing that this change in attitude has brought about is mobile working, utilising a remote connection to a company’s network.

This maturation in our approach to IT has led to certain problems that we need to address. As demands for performance, availability and security have increased, infrastructures have evolved into something completely new. The structure of the ‘third platform’ is totally different to the structures of the first and second; therefore the way in which networks are managed and secured also needs to change.

The risks to businesses

According to a recent survey by Freeform Dynamics (commissioned by Barracuda Networks) businesses feel that remote workers will bring with them many threats and difficulties. 64 percent of businesses feel that these mobile workers, are increasing the level of challenge associated with application access security, or have already. Additionally, 43 percent of businesses think that employees connecting remotely cause a very high or high security threat.

Fifty-four percent of businesses expect that this will increase over the next three years. This represents the traditional view, that anything external to the network is vulnerable, whilst ‘internal’ is safe. Whilst remote workers do present additional access points for malicious attack, the internal versus external approach does not present the whole picture.

Changing perimeters

With the black-and-white internal versus external approach, threats from office-based workers are underestimated. It is all very well protecting the internal network, but applications used by both in-office and remote workers can introduce threats too. Businesses need to move away from the idea that the perimeter of the network is the area that needs protection from security technology, and start looking at the application perimeter as a whole instead.

Sxity-three percent of businesses agree that we need to think less about internal versus external, and more about public versus private. There are positive steps forward in this direction, 59 percent of businesses have, are in the process of, or have it in their agenda to move from the ‘network perimeter mind-set’ and embrace the ‘application perimeter’ approach.

The solution

Whilst the ‘third platform’ plays host to many exciting developments in technology, it is important not to neglect the security of the foundations – the first and second ‘platforms’.

Devices such as firewalls, load balancers, and application delivery controllers can be deployed to protect both internal and external resources. This will ensure that remote workers and application users do not cause disruptive traffic or compromise the security of the business. However, technology is only part of the solution. The rest is the responsibility of users. All employees should be issued with training and clear guidelines to ensure that, whether they are an office-based or remote worker, their behaviour never puts company security at risk. This includes the very basics such as password protection and not following suspicious links.

About the author: Dr Wieland Alge, VP and General Manager Europe, Middle East and Africa

Wieland Alge is responsible for Barracuda Networks business in Europe, Middle East and Africa. Before this he was CEO and co-founder of phion AG, which merged 2009 with Barracuda Networks. With years of experience in the planning and deployment of international security projects, Wieland Alge has also knowledge of the user’s and administrator’s perspective on security. After attaining the PhD of Science, Wieland Alge was lecturer and Scientific Assistant at the Institute for Theoretical Physics at the University Innsbruck. In the year 2008 he won the recognition ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ from Ernst & Young.

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