Kaspersky Lab Teams With ScanSafe to Offer Web and IM Security-as-a-Service

LONDON & MOSCOW & SAN MATEO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Kaspersky Lab, a leading developer of secure content management solutions, today announced it has partnered with ScanSafe, the pioneer and leading provider of Web Security-as-a-Service, to offer three new Kaspersky Lab services: Kaspersky Hosted Security: webDefend, Kaspersky Hosted Security: webControl and Kaspersky Hosted Security: imDefend.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with Kaspersky Lab, one of the leading security vendors in the world”

“Email and browser vulnerabilities remain the main pathways used by malicious programs to penetrate computers. In addition to these channels, malware writers are increasingly using new methods to make their way onto the computers of their victims. In 2006, instant messaging systems (such as ICQ, AOL, and MSN) were among the Internet-related applications most vulnerable to infection. The new services will become a new line of defense against the most dangerous IT threats, and our customers will be able to surf the Web or use instant messaging with full confidence that they are absolutely secure,” said Andrey Nikishin, director of Kaspersky Lab IT security outsourcing services.

The webDefend service includes scanning of HTTP traffic for malicious and potentially hostile programs and scripts using Kaspersky Anti-Virus and Kaspersky BitHunt, a system that provides early detection of IT threats. In addition, the webControl service blocks unwanted content and allows businesses to manage and enforce Internet access policies, helping improve productivity and bandwidth utilization.

The imDefend service enables organizations to monitor the use of instant messaging systems, such as AOL, Yahoo!, ICQ and Windows Live, by employees. After the network administrator makes minor changes to the network settings, all incoming and outgoing IM messages will be filtered and controlled in real-time, increasing the company’s level of information security. The imDefend service also provides protection from malicious programs and spam distributed via instant messenger (SPIM).

“We are thrilled to be partnering with Kaspersky Lab, one of the leading security vendors in the world,” said Stijn Paumen, head of EMEA alliances, ScanSafe. “This strategic alliance allows us to extend the reach of our services to Russia and Eastern Europe and validates the growing market demand for Web Security-as-a-Service.”

As a fully managed service, the suite of hosted security services require no hardware, maintenance or upfront capital costs and deliver real-time scanning of Web and IM traffic. As a result, the services increase productivity, reduce bandwidth consumption and offer a lower total cost of ownership than hardware or software solutions. In addition, by removing the burden of maintenance, the solutions free internal IT resources, allowing them to focus on projects directly related to an organization’s core competency.

The new alliance adds to an existing partnership between ScanSafe and Kaspersky Lab. ScanSafe already uses the Kaspersky Lab antivirus engine in its Web Malware Scanning and IM Control services.

The webDefend, webControl and imDefend services will be available April 1, 2007.

About Kaspersky Lab

Kaspersky Lab (www.kaspersky.com) is a leading developer of secure content management solutions that protect against viruses, spyware, Trojans, hacker attacks and spam. Kaspersky Lab products reliably protect personal computers, networks of any size and complexity, and mobile devices. Technologies developed by Kaspersky Lab are used in the products of major hardware and software vendors across the globe. To find out more about Kaspersky Lab, visit www.kaspersky.com, www.viruslist.com.

About ScanSafe

ScanSafe is the largest global provider of Web Security-as-a-Service, ensuring a safe and productive Internet environment for businesses. ScanSafe solutions keep viruses and spyware off corporate networks and allow businesses to control and secure the use of the Web and instant messaging. As a fully managed service, ScanSafe's solutions require no hardware, upfront capital costs or maintenance and provide unparalleled real-time threat protection. Powered by its proactive, multilayered Outbreak Intelligence^TM threat detection technology, ScanSafe scans more than 6 billion Web requests and blocks 12 million threats each month for customers in over 30 countries.

Since pioneering the market for Web Security-as-a-Service, ScanSafe continues to deliver innovative Web security solutions, including the introduction of the world’s first early warning system which scans and classifies search engine results based on the presence of malware and unwanted content. In addition to being part of its corporate Web security service, the safe search technology is available to consumers as a free service at www.scandoo.com.

With offices in London and San Mateo, California, ScanSafe is privately owned and financed by Benchmark Capital and Scale Venture Partners. The company received the Info Security Global Product Excellence Award for Best Managed Security Service and was named one of Red Herring’s Top 100 Technology companies. For more information, visit www.scansafe.com.