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In a sign of IM’s growing importance to regulatory compliance, Symantec is acquiring IMlogic, the leader in instant messaging (IM) security software for businesses.
Privately-held IMlogic’s products help enterprises control and secure IM networks at a time when compliance with regulatory and corporate governance policies is a must. The two companies already partner on Symantec’s Enterprise Vault and Security Response products.
“The deal makes sense,” said Dianne McAdam, senior analyst and partner at Data Mobility Group. “When we talk about saving e-mail for compliance, we also need to think about saving instant messages, which IMlogic does. So for Symantec to have a full product suite, they need software to manage and retain instant messages. I would not be surprised if we see more vendors scrambling to find ways to manage instant messages.”
IM, already a fixture among consumers, is becoming an increasingly important real-time communications tool for businesses. The IM market is also evolving beyond basic messaging and file sharing. IM networks are increasingly being used in voice over IP (VoIP) services for free calling between clients.
But rampant adoption of communications technologies such as IM, e-mail and VoIP can also lead to breeding grounds for malicious threats, hack attacks and viruses, Symantec said in a statement. This is why Symantec believes IMLogic is a promising addition to bolster its security software offerings. And IM has increasingly come under regulations that require records and electronic communications to be stored and protected.
“Symantec will be the first and only vendor to offer a complete security and archiving solution to help customers manage all their messaging requirements,” said Enrique Salem, senior vice president of Security Products and Solutions, Symantec.
IMlogic’s IM Manager manages, secures and archives all IM traffic, with certified support for public and enterprise IM networks, including AOL, MSN, Yahoo!, Jabber and others. The IMlogic Real-Time Threat Protection System (RTTPS) prevents IM virus, worm, and malware outbreaks before they occur.
The deal, expected to close soon, also makes sense because Symantec and IMlogic have already partnered on many fronts.
Symantec’s Enterprise Vault, an e-mail and content archiving offering acquired in the Veritas purchase, has been integrated with IMlogic’s IM Manager since 2002 to address regulatory compliance for many of the world’s enterprises. Symantec said it plans to further integrate components of the IMlogic technology as a part of the Enterprise Vault archiving solution.
Moreover, Symantec Security Response has had a longstanding relationship with the IMlogic Threat Center, and research analysts from both companies have collaborated to address the exponential growth of IM and P2P threats on the Web.
Should the deal succeed, IMlogic’s threat detection and remediation for IM will be integrated into Symantec’s early warning and response system and will augment the existing capabilities of Symantec Security Response.
Article courtesy of InternetNews.com
