London, UK – WindowSecurity.com, a resource for IT administrators on Windows networks, has given a Gold Award and a rating of 4.5 out of 5 to GFI EndPointSecurity, GFI Software today announced.
GFI EndPointSecurity provides IT administrators with granular, network-wide controls for portable storage devices, removable media and a wide range of consumer electronic devices, such as USB sticks, PDAs, flash drives and iPods, which if not managed properly, can wreak havoc to a network’s security and reduce employee productivity.
In a lengthy review of GFI EndPointSecurity, Jakob H. Heidelberg talks about the ever-growing threat posed to networks by portable storage devices. He says that although a written corporate portable storage control policy as part of the company’s IT security policy is a must, administrators also need to ensure that the policy is followed by users.
“Since Windows Group Policies gives us very limited control over the mentioned devices, the common approach has been anything from physically blocking ports (USB / FireWire, etc.) to a total ban of iPods and similar devices on the network. It’s obvious that none of these countermeasures are adequate in most scenarios. We need technological barriers, such as those offered by GFI EndPointSecurity, to protect networks against unauthorized device usage,” Heidelberg wrote.
Control of storage devices
The reviewer says that GFI EndPointSecurity offers “many great features” and “allows the control of data flow to and from storage devices on a user by user basis throughout the network”. He also highlights certain advantages that the product has over operating systems like Vista that provide some built-in functionality for controlling access to removable storage devices through Group Policy. “GFI EndPointSecurity still offers corporations a number of security-related features that Microsoft Windows Vista Group Policy currently does not offer. In Microsoft Windows Vista, administrators can configure which users are allowed or denied access to different portable storage devices – this level of granular control however, cannot be extended to devices without a file system,” he said.
“GFI EndPointSecurity provides system administrators with the ability to exert almost the exact same level of granular control over all 32-bit versions of Windows 2000, XP, 2003 based computers and all devices without a file system. These include printers, scanners, modems, Bluetooth dongles, etc.”
The reviewer also comments positively about GFI EndPointSecurity’s tracking of device usage function and reporting capability. Concluding, he recommends users to download the trial version and test “this powerful piece of software”.
The full review can be found here: http://www.windowsecurity.com/articles/Product-Review-GFI-EndPointSecurity.html.
For more information about GFI EndPointSecurity and to download a trial version of the software visit: http://www.gfi.com/endpointsecurity/.
About WindowSecurity.com
WindowSecurity.com is a resource for IT administrators who are responsible for maintaining a secure Windows network. The site features a team of leading security experts from around the world that shed light on even the most obscure security issues. With over 40,000 unique visitors a month, Windowsecurity.com offers administrators the latest security bulletins, patch alerts, news, white papers, software listings and exclusive articles and tutorials.
About GFI
GFI is a leading software developer that provides a single source for network administrators to address their network security, content security and messaging needs. With award-winning technology, an aggressive pricing strategy and a strong focus on small-to-medium sized businesses, GFI is able to satisfy the need for business continuity and productivity encountered by organizations on a global scale. GFI has offices in the US, Malta, UK, Hong Kong and Australia which support more than 200,000 installations worldwide. GFI is a channel-focused company with over 10,000 partners worldwide. GFI is a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner. More information about GFI can be found at http://www.gfi.com.