Cisco turns to Trend Micro for network protection

As the job of protecting government networks from malicious code begins to permeate IT infrastructures, Cisco Systems Inc. this week agreed to incorporate software from Tokyo-based Trend Micro Inc. in its switches, routers and network appliances.

San Jose, Calif.-based Cisco will integrate Trend Micro's worm and virus technologies, vulnerability assessment and real-time outbreak-prevention capabilities, the companies said. The agreement is part of Cisco's Network Admission Control program, which pushes security out to the edges of a network in an attempt to isolate problems before they breach the enterprise.

"As Internet threats continue to evolve in their severity and complexity, it is critical that customers deploy comprehensive outbreak-prevention solutions to help build self-defending networks," said Richard Palmer, vice president of Cisco's VPN and Security business unit.

Cisco will initially integrate Trend Micro's network worm and virus signatures into its intrusion detection system software, which runs on Cisco Internetwork Operating System-based routers, Catalyst switches and network security appliances.

"With the government being a big Cisco customer, this helps provide remediation for users who are supposed to have access to the network" but might be using an infected system, said Tom Simmons, director of Trend Micro's federal sales division.

According to Trend Micro, the initial integration of its antivirus technologies with Cisco's IDS software will be available in the third quarter of 2004 for all Cisco products that support Cisco IDS software version 4.1. Integration of outbreak prevention capabilities will happen in early 2005.