Security news
Security news28 October 2004
New computer security protection for small business
Sophos, a world leader in protecting businesses against viruses and spam, today unveiled its new range of Small Business solutions, designed to meet the computer security needs of companies with fewer than 100 employees. The solutions provide businesses with products that are easy to install, use and update, and are ideal for companies with limited IT resources.
Recently, 80 per cent of respondents to a Sophos poll of 4,000 small- and medium-sized businesses indicated that the flood of spam made them less productive, yet only 28 per cent currently have an anti-spam solution in place. A follow-up poll, revealed that more than 50 per cent of employees felt that their employers should take preventative action to help ensure that spam containing violent, pornographic and other offensive content does not find its way to their inboxes.
These findings are supported by the New South Wales Department of State and Regional Development which surveyed 300 of its small business clients in July 2004. In this survey, 95 per cent indicated that they had received spam and that spam adversely impacted their business. In addition, 73 per cent of businesses considered that spam is a 'timewaster', 36 per cent stated that their staff spend more than 30 minutes a day dealing with spam and 25 per cent believed the cost of spam to their businesses to be more than A$5,000 per annum.
"The majority of the more than one million small businesses in Australia do not have dedicated IT managers and yet research indicates they are relying on the online world and email for their day-to-day operations in ever increasing numbers," said Kourosh Ghassemi, Research Director for SMEs, Vertical Markets and Infrastructure at IDC Australia. "Security is of vital importance to these businesses and while most are aware of the threats out there, they are unsure of how to protect themselves. Any technology that can assist them in an easy and affordable way would be of great benefit."
Rob Forsyth, Managing Director for Sophos Australia and New Zealand, said, "Faced with increasing risk brought about by viruses, spyware, phishing attacks and spam, small businesses have told us they want a hands-off solution that is simple to install and updates automatically. Sophos has addressed these concerns by completely reengineering its software for small business use and, from today, our enterprise strength protection is available straight out of the box, with minimal setup, to protect small businesses 24/7.
"Furthermore, we've addressed the common IT resources issue faced by small businesses by backing our software with unlimited access to local and live customer support, meaning business owners can focus on growth and rely on our resources when they're needed."
The Sophos Small Business Suite provides full protection against today's virus and spam threats for servers, desktops, notebooks and internet gateways. This suite comprises the Sophos PureMessage Small Business Edition, which combines award-winning computer virus and spam protection for the email gateway and Sophos Anti-Virus Small Business Edition, which offers a comprehensive desktop and server defence against computer virus threats.
The Sophos Small Business Suite automatically downloads the latest virus and spam protection, and ensures minimal impact on users while improving network efficiency. The software can be centrally deployed and managed using the Sophos Control Center.
Key Features:
- Complete protection against viruses, spyware and phishing attacks on servers, desktops, internet gateways and notebooks
- Industry-leading spam protection
- Automatic updates
- 24/7 technical support
- No hidden costs
Pricing and Availability:
The Sophos Small Business Suite is available immediately and indicative pricing for 50 users is A$4,799.00. Please contact Sophos on +61 2 9409 9100 for your nearest reseller or visit the Small Business Suite page.
Small Business Security Reseller Seminars:
Sophos will introduce the Small Business Suite to resellers at seminars in Australia during November. Sophos will outline local market opportunities and detail the key computer security concerns facing small- and medium-sized businesses.
The Sophos Small Business Security Reseller Seminars will be held in the following city centres:
| Brisbane | November 16 | The Novotel |
| Adelaide | November 17 | Hilton Adelaide |
| Melbourne | November 23 | Sheraton Towers Southgate |
| Sydney | November 24 | The Westin |
Sophos will also conduct regional reseller seminars around Australia.
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About Sophos
Sophos enables enterprises all over the world to secure and control their IT infrastructure. Sophos's network access control, endpoint, web and email solutions simplify security to provide integrated defenses against malware, spyware, intrusions, unwanted applications, spam, policy abuse, data leakage and compliance drift. With over 20 years of experience, Sophos protects over 100 million users in nearly 150 countries with its reliably engineered security solutions and services. Recognized for its high level of customer satisfaction and powerful yet easy-to-use solutions, Sophos has received many industry awards, as well as positive reviews and certifications.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com
