Neoteris Announces Extension Of Access Series To Address Industry Demand For Secure Wireless Mobile Access

Neoteris SSL Access Products Deliver Industry’s Only Truly Clientless Support for Broad Range of Mobile Wireless Applications and Devices, Including Sony Ericsson’s P800 Smartphone

SUNNYVALE, Calif. – Sept. 8, 2003 – Neoteris*, Inc., the leading Application Security Gateway vendor, today announced expanded support on the Neoteris Access Series* product family to include popular wireless device and handheld computing systems, enabling enterprises to cost-effectively deploy secure wireless access to their mobile employees. Neoteris has again established unique customer value, by enabling the first truly clientless wireless access solution, eliminating the hassle and complexity of client software downloads that are particularly complicated on lesser provisioned wireless devices. This new functionality allows Neoteris to further address the growing demand for extending secure access to authorized mobile users over increasingly prevalent wireless networks.

“Neoteris SSL-based access fits our P800 perfectly for clientless secure access to email, calendar and contacts data, as well as browser-based applications,” said Vu Nguyen, Vice President, Enterprise and Emerging Business at Sony Ericsson. “Ease-of-deployment and hassle-free operation without complicated settings makes it ideal for mobile usage.”

Demonstrated last week at Sony DreamWorld 2003 in Paris, the Access Series has proven interoperability with the P800 smartphones, as well as for laptop access on the Sony Ericsson GC79 GPRS/WLAN card. For more information on Sony products proven interoperable with Neoteris, please see www.sonyericsson.com/P800 and www.sonyericsson.com/GC79/ .

The Neoteris solution is proven to provide secure remote access on any wireless device with a Symbian or Pocket PC operating system. Unlike IPSec and other SSL VPN solutions with announced wireless device support, the Neoteris solution is the only one that does not require a client download or need a Java agent to set up a secure remote connection. With the majority of lesser provisioned wireless devices having memory and CPU constraints, any loaded software can cause negative performance results. In addition, because the Neoteris solution leverages the existing SSL support in Pocket PC browsers, and other components of Symbian-based devices, it is compatible with a wide range of devices, as well as many service provider networks.

According to the Gartner, Inc., Research note “Mobility Makes Information a Real-Time Resource” (Nick Jones, Research VP; April 3, 2003), “Mobile wireless devices and communications are delivering the most radical changes to information collection and distribution technology that have occurred in a decade, so they will be an essential component of a real-time enterprise strategy. Organizations should identify situations where fresher or more-accurate information could benefit real-time enterprise goals and determine how mobile technologies could provide it. A real-time enterprise needs its information to be a real-time resource. Wireless technology provides new, fast and flexible ways to communicate information, so it will be an essential element of a real-time enterprise strategy.”

Wireless devices are also popular in such markets as healthcare, manufacturing and public safety, where they provide real-time secure access to information such as patient records and results, inventory lookups, and critical driver and vehicle data. With support for clientless secure access from wireless devices using the Opera browser on the Symbian operating system, as well as the Pocket Internet Explorer (IE) browser for Pocket PCs, Neoteris supports the broadest array of today’s popular wireless devices. In addition to Sony Ericsson’s P800, other devices using the Symbian OS include Nokia’s 7650 and 9210i Communicator devices, and the Psion Revo Plus(tm) and netBook. Popular mobile devices using Pocket IE include the Dell(tm) Axim(tm) X5; Toshiba’s e355, e350, e750, and e755 devices; and Pocket PCs from Audiovox, ViewSonic* and ZAYO.

“According to our research, sales of terminals in the Smartphone category have doubled from the first quarter of 2002 to the first quarter of 2003, representing the highest growth of any single category of terminals,” added Michael King, principal analyst, Gartner Dataquest.

One of the issues hindering the adoption of mobile wireless technologies and applications has been security. Because wireless networks are much more susceptible to interception than wireline networks, enterprises have been forced to choose between deploying complex and expensive solutions to a minimal number of employees or not deploying wireless offerings at all out of the fear that communications and corporate networks will be compromised. Neoteris offers an attractive solution because it leverages existing application and PDA infrastructure while providing a strong enterprise security solution for wireless remote access that can be rapidly and cost-effectively deployed to a highly scalable number of users.

Neoteris minimizes the security risks of mobile wireless technologies by offering application-layer access through its Access Series products. As such, authorized remote users can access only the designated applications and resources that have been specified by IT administrators, rather than accessing the entire corporate network. In addition to a strong security component, Neoteris also offers certified support for a broad range of the most widely used wireless applications and wireless handheld devices through the Neoteris Technology Partner program. This extensive partner program ensures that Neoteris customers can deploy secure wireless access using the same infrastructure and vendors that they already have in place.

“Mobile wireless technologies offer enterprises tremendous promise for increased productivity and connectivity to resources,” said Neoteris President and CEO Krishna “Kittu” Kolluri. “As such, there is an increasing pressure for businesses to harness handheld devices to work for them, specifically without adding significant cost or security issues. Neoteris pioneered clientless SSL-based access in 2001, and we have always delivered secure connectivity through any type of Web-enabled device, offering a rich and compelling end-user experience, no matter what the method of access.”

Neoteris IVE Secure Access Appliances
The Neoteris Access Series provides enterprise-class secure access to network resources for remote employees, customers, and partners. Contrary to traditional access technologies, there is no client software to install because Neoteris leverages SSL for secure, controlled access to resources via any Web browser. The Access appliances also eliminate the need to secure or harden servers, or make changes to existing infrastructure. The result is a more cost effective, secure access solution that is easy for customers to deploy and simple for end-users to operate.

Neoteris Access appliances provide application-layer access, stringent access controls, and granular auditing and reporting capabilities to further minimize IT headaches and security concerns. Additionally, the IVE platform offers enterprise-class high availability and performance scalability options, so secure access can be deployed on a wide scale without worrying about user downtime, lost productivity or network performance. Neoteris IVE appliances have passed rigorous security audits by TruSecure Corporation, Cryptography Research, Inc., and security and forensic computing expert Dan Farmer. The products have also won numerous awards as an innovative and compelling access solution, helping enterprises increase efficiency and productivity.

About Neoteris
Neoteris, Inc. is the market leader in the Application Security Gateway and SSL VPN product categories. With its Instant Virtual Extranet (IVE) platform, Neoteris delivers innovative, best-of-breed security products, including the award-winning Neoteris Access Series and the new Neoteris Meeting Series* security appliances. Founded in May 2000, Neoteris is a privately held company backed by Jim Clark, The Barksdale Group, New Enterprise Associates, Battery Ventures, and individual investors. The company is headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif., and has international offices in London, Frankfurt, and Hyderabad, India. Go to http://www.neoteris.com> for more information.

Don't miss