Qualys Network Vulnerability Scanning Platform Tops 1,000 Online Vulnerability Tests

Gartner Group Security Conference, Orlando, Florida — June 11, 2001 — Qualys, Inc., a leading provider of enterprise network vulnerability assessment and monitoring solutions, today announced that its global online vulnerability scanning platform now incorporates more than 1,000 vulnerability assessment signatures to remotely detect and evaluate network security risks. The ability of Qualys to quickly identify and integrate new vulnerabilities into its platform enables Qualys-powered Managed Security Providers (MSPs) and enterprise customers to enjoy the highest levels of remote security scanning breadth and accuracy.

Demonstrated at the Gartner Group Conference in Orlando this week, the Qualys platform provides a distributed global scanning architecture on which an increasing number of MSPs have based remote online auditing services. Browser-launched vulnerability tests are performed on-demand and in real time to identify and assess network security holes over the Internet, without specialized software or hardware. An average of ten new vulnerability detection signatures are tested and added to the Qualys platform each week as new vulnerabilities surface, enabling users to stay continually abreast of the latest security threats.

“Qualys provides a ready-made global scanning platform of impressive range and intelligence,” said Ed Skoudis, vice-president of Security Strategy at Predictive Systems, a network security and consulting firm, which is using Qualys to develop online scanning capabilities that extend its ethical hacking services. “We think automated security auditing is the ‘new big thing’ in network security and we are leveraging Qualys to deliver delivering fast, accurate and convenient Internet-based auditing services.”

Capable of quickly scanning networks of all sizes, the Qualys platform performs multiple non-intrusive vulnerability tests on all layers of each network-connected device’s communication stack and correlates the results to achieve the highest possible detection accuracy. The platform’s database-driven hosted architecture allows Qualys to rapidly update and expand its detection signatures for new vulnerabilities and provides customers with instantaneous signature updates without any user intervention-often delivering new vulnerability updates before hackers become aware of them. The accuracy and scope of the Qualys platform is further enhanced by real-time feeds from major sources of vulnerability information such as SecurityFocus and eSecurityOnline.

Importantly, even as the number of performed tests continues to grow, fast and accurate detection is achieved through the use of proprietary Active Vulnerability Testing algorithms. When a system is scanned, a knowledge base about the system and its configuration is established. Active Vulnerability Testing allows the platform to make intelligent decisions that significantly reduce the time required for a complete security assessment of a system, application or network.

“The market is clearly demonstrating its receptiveness to automated security auditing and the vulnerability scanning technologies that make it possible,” said Gerhard Eschelbeck, Qualys vice president of engineering. “Just as Qualys was a pioneer of remote scanning, we are committed to continually resetting the bar for scanning range, rapidity and accuracy.

Prospective customers can evaluate the Qualys online vulnerability scanning platform through a free trial scan, available by visiting www.qualys.com/forms/trial.html.

About Qualys

With more than 2,000 subscribers ranging from small businesses to multinational corporations, Qualys has become the leader in on demand vulnerability management and policy compliance. The company allows security managers to strengthen the security of their networks effectively, conduct automated security audits and ensure compliance with internal policies and external regulations. Qualys’ on demand technology offers customers significant economic advantages, requiring no capital outlay or infrastructure to deploy and manage. Its distributed scanning capabilities and unprecedented scalability make it ideal for large, distributed organisations. Hundreds of large companies have deployed Qualys on a global scale, including AXA, DuPont, Hershey Foods, ICI Ltd, Novartis, Sodexho, Standard Chartered Bank and many others. Qualys is headquartered in Redwood City, California, with European offices in France, Germany and the U.K., and Asian representatives in Japan, Singapore, Australia, Korea and the Republic of China. For more information, please visit www.qualys.com.

Qualys, the Qualys logo and QualysGuard are proprietary trademarks of Qualys, Inc. All other products or names may be trademarks of their respective companies.

Media Contact:
Tami Casey
Qualys
media@qualys.com