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Irvine Technology Corporation: A Retina Network Security Scanner Case Study
Security Consulting Firm Relies on Retina for Comprehensive Penetration Testing
ITC switches from scanning tools to detailed vulnerability assessment and remediation solution to meet growing security needs of clients.
Situation
The Irvine Technology Corporation is a consultancy providing effective IT solutions. ITC uses their knowledge of software development as well as design and management of scalable networks to reduce the potential for security breaches, increase operational capabilities, and network performance in their clients infrastructures.
ITC's practice includes business continuity planning; design, deployment and management of mission-critical applications; design and management of highly available, secure, and scalable networks; and business analysis and process engineering.
ITC is committed to conducting complete penetration testing of network infrastructures as well as integrating improved security practices.
Challenge
Ed Pagett heads up the security consulting division of ITC. Pagett and his team rely on vulnerability detection as a core component in proactively identifying and correcting network issues as a result of missing patches or improper configurations. ITC's reputation, and the security of its customer's networks, is dependent on a fast, reliable, and non-intrusive scanner to pinpoint issues before they become problematic.
In the past, Pagett tested a variety of scanning tools for cursory probing and network review. Though these tools were useful, the team found that they only provided a certain level of problem identification and were not regularly updated to include the latest vulnerabilities, which could affect their customer base. Therefore, ITC needed to manual check for issues that these scanning tools could not positively identify.
ITC had become frustrated with the amount of customization required to conduct a thorough network vulnerability test. Also, relying on first and secondgeneration scanning tools that were not backed by solid research and development was not something Pagett and his team wanted to build a consulting business around. Pagett and his team needed a complete vulnerability assesment product that would save them time, yet not compromise the in-depth level of security testing ITC was committed to providing. ITC wanted to evolve from using scanning tools, to a robust vulnerability assessment and remediation system that could handle complex network architectures of even the most demanding enterprise clients.
Response
ITC began intensive testing of the three leading vulnerability assessment products in the marketplace by comparing their speed, accuracy, price, and their vulnerability database currency. Having a product backed by a team of security professionals dedicated to vulnerability detection was a major factor for ITC since the strength of the research team was a direct reflection of the organizations dedication to the product.
While evaluating the products, ITC's team consistently found that eEye's Retina Network Security Scanner outpaced the competition across the board in all categories. Pagett decided to test the product himself and concurred that it was by far the fastest, most reliable, and easy-to-use vulnerability assessment solution available. Furthermore, Retina exceeded the other qualifications in terms of vulnerability research expertise and speed in which the product incorporated tests to detect the latest vulnerabilities.
"For ITC, Retina offered the best value combination of technical capabilities and an attractive price point that would enable us to enhance our penetration testing capabilities," said Pagett. "eEye is focused on security and dedicated to protecting the network environment by proactively identifying vulnerabilities, especially in Microsoft's technologies. They are consistently looking for holes and responding to them. That says a lot about a company, especially considering that the majority of the marketplace is based on Microsoft operating systems," states Pagett.
From a technical perspective, Retina offered some extremely useful tools that saved ITC security consultants' considerable time and yielded detailed information that would have otherwise been difficult to create. For example, the ability to show the client the vulnerability assessment console and drill down into issues on an individual system in order to overcome specific challenges was a key feature for ITC.
"The Retina console is one feature that allows us to increase visibility of our client's current state so we can address where the organization needs to go. Not just technically, but also in terms of administrative and operational controls to create a more robust security policy," stated Pagett.
Results
Retina has enabled the ITC security team to perform regular penetration tests at existing and new clients with complete confidence. Using Retina on a regular basis is part of an ongoing process to safeguard digital assets and maintain network integrity. "Retina provides a quicker return on auditing and compliance of both policy and implementation practices for internal and external use," states Pagett.
With the number of newly discovered vulnerabilities on the rise, routine utilization of Retina now enables ITC to accurately assess the state of an organizations network security. Retina has enabled this "state of security" judgment a process based on fact and is no longer theoretical. Security issues are clearly defined along with remediation actions needed to resolve potential problems.
By using a Retina consulting license, ITC is able to perform the initial vulnerability assessment and perform remediation to strengthen network integrity. Once complete, ITC recommends routine vulnerability assessment for their clients and suggests they purchase their own license of Retina because it is so reliable and easy-to-use. Therefore, even organizations that do not have seasoned security experts can still utilize Retina to run complete vulnerability assessments so they can maintain a hardened network and be alerted to new vulnerabilities that may affect them. ITC's message to its customers is simple - network security is an ongoing process that requires constant upkeep and scanning to avert potential compromise.
Irvine Technology Corporation: A Retina Network Security Scanner Case Study (pdf)