Cisco Security Agent

Introduction

The Cisco Security Agent (CSA) identifies and prevents malicious behavior on your servers and desktops. Used effectively, CSA eliminates security risks and helps reduce operational costs.

Simpler-Webb is key to effective CSA implementation and utilization. With our knowledge of CSA, we provide a complete security solution that prevents malicious activity from disrupting your network. By allowing us to expertly handle the complexities of planning and implementation, your company can reap the full benefits of CSA.

Cisco Security Agent Business Benefits:

"Day Zero" Protection: A behavior-based system, CSA governs each system by defined rules and prohibits any activity outside of these rules, protecting you from "Day Zero" attacks. These are attacks where there are zero days of warning of a virus or worm attack. However, because CSA is a behavior-based system requiring no signature updates, viruses and worms can't realize their destructive intent.

Encrypted Attack Protection: Only the system on which CSA resides is able to read encrypted data. Since CSA resides on the end system, it can then identify the impact of an attempted attack and stop it before it happens. For example, a worm wants to "delete a system file." The CSA thinks "a normal system wouldn't do that" and it stops the computer from deleting the file. No other security device is capable of protecting your system from these attacks since the contents are encrypted and hidden from network-based hardware devices.

Security Policy Enforcement: Using CSA's profile definitions, users are now limited to only performing tasks sanctioned by the organization. For example, one computer might have the CSA configured to only allow the use of Microsoft Office and your proprietary applications and nothing else. Therefore, the CSA prohibits Instant Messenger, installation of new applications, and downloads from the Internet. You have control over your network and what users can do.

Prevents Worm/Virus Propagation: CSA prevents viruses and worms from executing. If a user connects an infected computer to your network, the machines with CSA will not execute the virus/worm, halting the spread to other machines on your network.

Protection on all Computers: When installed on all machines - servers, laptops, desktops, including remote, roaming, and VPN users - CSA protects your entire network. Each machine has its own guardian effectively thwarting malicious activity from harming the individual machine and spreading across your entire network.

Cisco Security Agent Components

Three components make up the Cisco Security Agent suite.

1. The Agent is software that resides on a machine and prevents any activity not sanctioned by your network administrator or your company's predefined security policies.
2. The Profiler is software that creates the rules that the Agent uses to govern each system, permitting or prohibiting activity accordingly.
3. The Security Management Solution (VMS) Server manages CSA, keeping track of all Agents and their respective profiles, and enables you to make desired changes, such as software upgrades.

Flexibility To Work The Way You Want

With Simpler-Webb, you have the flexibility to plan and implement a solution with one or all of the three CSA components. Use our Consulting Services to plan and deploy a CSA solution that you manage yourself, or choose our VaultIT IDP Managed Services.

With our VaultIT IDP Managed Services, we maintain the profiler software that creates your policies as well as the server that processes all information. All you do is purchase the Agent software - and nothing else. Depending on your organization, this might prove the most cost-effective way to reap benefits and control the total cost of planning, implementing and managing your CSA solution.

Expertise With Financial Institutions

Our extensive experience with financial institutions across the U.S. means we understand the unique needs of these users and networks. This knowledge speeds implementation and keeps employees working productively. It also means we understand the needs of any company to whom network security is a business imperative due to regulatory requirements or an exceptionally competitive marketplace.