Track: Technical
Author: Stephen Gates, Chief Research Intelligence Analyst, NSFOCUS
In the world of getting from one place to another, people face a common dilemma. What transportation will get them to their destination quickly, safely, and affordable? While nearly everyone would enjoy cruising around in a luxury car, most people are just looking for the best option to get the job done. Something that is reliable, efficient, easy to operate, and affordable. No one likes paying too much. Interestingly enough, a parallel can be drawn in the context of DDoS defenses and the solutions NSFOCUS provides to the cyber-security community.
For years, organizations around the world have viewed DDoS defenses as a necessity. Many have experienced an attack or have been threatened with an impending attack. The risk to the revenue stream grows daily. Unfortunately, in many cases the cost of mounting a DDoS defense is too high for some organizations to justify. Such defenses are a cost center for many organizations, so savvy organizations look for affordable solutions that will effectively eliminate the threat, without breaking the bank.
For years, companies offering DDoS defense technologies have been charging their clients – service providers, hosting providers, and enterprises – exorbitant amounts of money. Because these organizations must defend their networks and their customers from DDoS attacks, they had to resort to extremely costly solutions because that was the only choice.
The early days of DDoS defense saw few if any competitors, so vendors could charge whatever they wanted for their technology. The buyer was forced to either absorb the costs, or live without defenses in place. Even today, many organizations continue to pay large amounts for support and maintenance agreements for technology that’s nearly a decade old. In addition, there is an unbelievably large number of organizations that are completely unprotected from DDoS attacks. In general, the reason is solely the cost.
In the early 1900’s, Henry Ford saw a huge opportunity to bring affordable transportation to the masses. He understood that in order to capture a broad range of customers, his cars had to be as affordable as possible. He did not skimp on efficiency, safety, or reliability; instead, he looked at what was needed to get the job done – for the best price. As a result, he changed the world. NSFOCUS understands how to replicate that type of success.
Today, organizations are looking for the best option to get the job done. DDoS defenses are no different. NSFOCUS solutions provide the highest quality protection, detection and mitigation – all designed with the idea of getting the job done for the best price possible. As the world learns about NSFOCUS, there is a growing realization that it’s no longer necessary to get by without defenses in place. And it’s no longer necessary to pay large sums of money for traditional solutions that are simply too expensive to purchase and maintain.
Steve is a key research intelligence analyst with NSFOCUS IBD. He has been instrumental in solving the DDoS problem for service providers, hosting providers, and enterprises in North America and abroad. Steve has more than 25 years of computer networking and security experience with an extensive background in the deployment and implementation of next-generation security solutions. In his last role, Steve served as the Chief Security Evangelist for Corero Network Security before joining the NSFOCUS team. Steve is a recognized Subject Matter Expert on DDoS attack tools and methodologies, including next-generation defense approaches. You can usually find Steve providing insight, editorial, industry thought leadership, and presentations covering the latest security topics at RSA, SecureWorld, SANs, Black Hat, IANS, ISSA, InfraGard, ISACA, etc.
