Application security specialist Cenzic announced enhancements to its
flagship Hailstorm enterprise software product today at the CSI Computer
Security tradeshow.
Version 3.0 features a new dashboard for monitoring and managing threats to
systems as well as customization for the financial services, retail and
health care industries.
The application acts like a pack of hackers. It probes a company’s Web-based
applications for vulnerabilities that could be used to launch attacks that
hobble site performance or expose sensitive customer data.
Medium-to-large enterprises find the product compelling because it performs
the task faster and cheaper than IT staffers can, Mandeep Khera, a spokesman
for the Santa Clara, Calif., company, told internetnews.com.
“There are 200 new application vulnerabilities every month, and that’s not
counting in-house applications,” Khera said. “The [IT] budget’s not growing
fast enough [to test for all of them].”
Hailstorm is available either as a managed service or installed software, and
pricing varies depending on the number of applications being tested.
Unlike many small firms, Cenzic has managed to convince large organizations
to buy its product. On the market for just nine months, Hailstorm is already
used by a number of high-profile clients, including Boston
College and a number of large financial services firms.
There are two reasons for that, Khera said. First is that it’s financially
stable. The company raised $15 million in June from well-known venture
capital investors. Security software maker Symantec is
also an investor with a minority stake.
The privately held firm, which also has a development office near Mumbai,
India, believes it will reach break-even point at the end of 2006 and is
ramping up its sales and marketing efforts.
Khera said the firm is already attracting interest from large network
equipment makers and security vendors who are looking to augment existing
offerings to security-conscious customers.
