-------&&&&&****Intrusion Detection FAQ: What Are The Top Selling IDS/IPS and What Differentiates Them from Each Other? :) :D :P ****-------&&&&&
Selecting an Intrusion Prevention System (IPS) can be a daunting
task. While an independent assessment of available solutions is
strongly recommended
as a best practice before procurement and deployment, a good place to
start a research effort is to look at the market leaders and to compare
their
offerings.
According to Infonetics Research, Cisco ranked highest among six top
selling IPS solution providers -- the other five suppliers being
McAfee,
Juniper, IBM, Sourcefire and TippingPoint -- based on assessments
performed by large organizations on eight selection criteria, ranging
from value
and pricing to technology and the product's roadmap for the future.
These same six providers also rank highest in terms of their
effectiveness on the
latest Gartner report, although CIsco and IBM are considered to be
challengers to the market led by the other four vendors.
As IPS systems have evolved in time and grown in maturity, several
traits are shared by the various offerings, the primary one being the
successful
migration from passive IDS monitoring systems to active in-line/in-band
IPS choke points. This type of "pre-patch shield" provided by modern
IPS systems
is a feature made possible from its perimeter location; the vendor's
frequent database updates gives their clients network-level protection
while they
work out a patching and hardening strategy on their internal production
nodes. Other improvements generally found in today's IPS systems
include attack
recognition beyond simple signature matching, dropping of malicious
sessions as opposed to simple resetting of connections, and the
deployment of
dedicated hardware that can operate at "wire speeds".
Cisco has several IPS solution offerings, which can be implemented
via its IPS Sensor Software as well as through hardware (with physical
add-on modules). A component of the Cisco Self-Defending Network, the
Cisco IPS 4200 Series Sensors provide protection against worms, Trojans
and exploits against application & operating system vulnerabilities.
The IPS 4200 series filters for over 300 signatures and has 30
detection
engines, providing protection for over 30,000 known threats. On top of
standard signature-base matching capabilities, a globally-managed
"reputation analysis" feature can push updates to client systems in a
matter of minutes. Adopting a Cisco solution would certainly be
attractive
to those organizations that exclusively deploy and maintain Cisco
network equipment; Cisco IPS solutions can be integrated and managed
using
existing Cisco network management systems.
IBM, through its acquisition of IDS pioneer Internet Security
Systems, inherits a robust inspection engine and deploys their Proventia
IPS solution
in a variety of deliverables including dedicated hardware. At the core
is a "security convergence" strategy that is engineered to provide
protection
for the wide range of threats that exist today, from web-based attacks
to insider threats to standard malware protection, through a single
consolidated
solution. A key feature is the IBM Protocol Analysis Module (PAM) that
supports a deep packet inspection capability. A scaleable solution
through its
modular product architecture, additional protection modules can be
introduced as new threats emerge. Their X-Force research and
development team
provides 24/7 monitoring of ongoing threat levels in order to provide
their customers with prompt updates to their IPS solutions.
Juniper Networks also maintains a portfolio of IPS solutions, ranging
from standalone systems to integrated all-in-one security solutions.
The Juniper IPS is Implemented as an application that can run collocated
with other perimeter functions such as firewalls and rate limiters.
Strengths in this solution include a highly-granular Role Based Access
Control implementation for administration, a communications protocol
validation capability performed against published RFCs, and selective
contextual screening of network traffic. Its evolution from Netscreen
acquirer to the developer of their next-generation JUNOS platform has
helped them maintain their market share in the IDS/IPS market.
McAfee's acquisition of IntruShield makes them a player in the IPS
marketplace with the rebranded McAfee Network Security Platform (NSP),
also offered in various packages from all-in-one to dedicated solutions.
NSP is the only IPS appliance that has the NSS Group's Multi-Gigabit
IPS certification, and it supports integration to the McAfee
Vulnerability Manager and ePolicy Orchestrator, a management platform
that pushes
down policy to managed nodes and systems. Centralized management of IPS
nodes and policies is implemented through the McAfee Network Security
Manager system, a separate appliance that implements a scaleable and
intuitive management system that can support up to 1000 sensors.
Sourcefire is perhaps best known as the commercial arm of the Snort
IDS project. The product's intrusion detection and protection engine
is well-known in the security community due to its maturity and its
open-source accessibility to students, although the learning curve
associated
with this type of offering is considered to be high. The Sourcefire RNA
feature recommends which rules to implement based on the type of
network
being protected. The Sourcefire Vulnerability Research Team (VRT) is
complemented by the open source community to provide and maintain
updates to
the configurations of their product line, which includes hardware and
software solutions built on the Snort core. Snort is a highly
configurable
and expandable IDS/IPS solution, with its rule set built from a library
of 14,000 rules that can be readily adapted and expanded by individual
security administrators.
TippingPoint, acquired by 3Com in 2005, is a major player in the IPS
market, and enjoys a significant market share. Also provided in a
variety of flavours, it is able to provide zero-day protection
capabilities due to its relationship with an army of independent
researchers.
Built upon their Threat Suppression Engine (TSE) with custom ASICs at
the core, the TippingPoint IPS provides a high-performance solution that
can efficiently scan packets at Layers 2-7 of the OSI model. Their
research team pushes out emergency updates on top of standard updates
twice
a week; their Digital Vaccine service delivers filters that are designed
to block multiple attack types that can be associated with new
exploits.
The product line's default settings provide a ready-to-use policy set to
greatly facilitate initial commissioning.
Resources:
NIST Special Publication 800-94: Guide to Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems (IDPS)
http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/nistpubs/800-94/SP800-94.pdf
Cisco, McAfee, Juniper top IPS vendors
http://www.ciol.com/Technology/Security/News-Reports/Cisco,-McAfee,-Juniper-top-IPS-vendors/16909125093/0/
Cisco, McAfee, and Juniper top intrusion prevention vendor ratings by enterprise IPS users
http://www.infonetics.com/pr/2009/User-Plans-Intrusion-Prevention-Systems-Study-Highlights.asp
Magic Quadrant for Network Intrusion Prevention System Appliances
http://www.sourcefire.com/products/sfsem/gartnerMQ?semg=USGTR1
Cisco Intrusion Prevention System
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/sw/secursw/ps2113/index.html
Cisco IPS 4200 Series Sensors
http://www.cisco.com/en/US/products/hw/vpndevc/ps4077/index.html
IBM - Proventia Network Intrusion Protection Systems (IPS)
http://www-935.ibm.com/services/us/index.wss/offerfamily/iss/a1030570
IBM Proventia Network Intrusion Protection System
ftp://ftp.software.ibm.com/common/ssi/pm/sp/n/sed03056usen/SED03056USEN.PDF
Juniper Networks: Intrusion Prevention System (IPS)
http://www.juniper.net/us/en/products-services/software/ise-applications/ips/
McAfee Network Security Platform
http://www.mcafee.com/us/enterprise/products/network_security/network_security_platform.html
Snort
Sourcefire Intrusion Prevention Systems (IPS)
Sourcefire Vulnerability Research Team (VRT)
TippingPoint Intrusion Prevention Systems