Sophos NAC Advanced v3.2.2

 

Product Information

Vendor:Sophos
Price:£8.50 per user per year for 1,000 seats (minimum three-year contract)

Product Rating

Features star star star star star
Ease of Use star star star star
Performance star star star star star
Documentation star star star star star
Support star star star star star
Value for Money star star star star
Overall Rating star star star star star
For:Reporting, customisable policy templates, DHCP integration capabilities
Against:Subscription-based pricing may be costly for larger enterprises
Verdict:Decent NAC solution for managing patch, AV and firewall compliance on endpoints

Related Group Test

Sophos NAC Advanced v3.2.2 is a software-based offering providing central management for policy, assessment, reporting/auditing/alerting, mitigation and enforcement by user group, through integration with both Active Directory and LDAP.

Installation requires quite a bit of preparation and configuration. Setup of the NAC Advanced Compliance Application Server is a fully scripted install. A typical customer installs the Sophos NAC Advanced Compliance Manager on a dedicated Windows Server 2003/2008 Enterprise edition. You can use the SQL database or have a separate SQL 2005/2008 database running on dedicated servers.

The solution supports a combination of agent-based enforcement for managed endpoints and DHCP-based enforcement for unmanaged endpoints. There is also a web agent that is downloadable as a dissolvable Java component and support for 802.1X.

Both pre- and post-authorisation of managed endpoints is included. Pre-authorisation is available for guest endpoints when using the dissoluble Java agent. It can also provide NAC for IPsec and SSL VPNs.

Sophos NAC Advanced includes pre-defined compliance detections for almost 800 applications, as well as over 1,600 OS patch detections.  This provides over 2,400 predefined detections for inclusion within policy with just a simple click of the mouse. The roll up concept from groups, policies and profiles can be complicated at first but once you get the concept, this becomes a very comprehensive policy tool, delivering multiple levels of compliance. Numerous templates are available to help create enforcer templates.

The reporting and alerting capabilities are very detailed. Compliance level details are readily available and a compliance dashboard clearly displays the overall status of the user population. There are very detailed drilldown capabilities from the high-level reporting dashboard. Full audit logging for all system access and changes are available. Alerting is very flexible and the configuration is through an easy-to-use drop-down menu.

Standard 24/7 phone, email and web support is included with the product. There are upgraded support options available for a 15 and 25 per cent upgrade.

Sophos NAC Advanced takes some time to get running but is easy to manage once set up.

 
 
 

SC Featured Webcast

Employee file sharing: the good, the bad and the ugly

Streaming live on 4th June 2013 at 3pm GMT

This new webcast is set to unveil the full results from the latest data security survey, where it was revealed that 50 per cent of the information security professionals asked said that they had 'no real visibility' of how data is being sent within and outside the company. Guest speakers include the director of information security from Monster.co.uk and the ISO from Atos. To secure your free place, please click here.

SC Webcasts

Security beyond the (fire)wall

Streaming live on 6th June at 3pm BST

This webcast addresses the technological challenges of maintaining full control of your most sensitive information - even once it goes beyond the firewall - while maintaining the freedom and flexibility necessary to allow your staff and other stakeholders to work as efficiently as possible. Tune in for free to hear from our regular and popular guest speaker, Bola Rotibi from (ISC)2 application security advisory board. To secure your place, please click here.


2013's invisible network threats: Identify and respond

Streaming live on 11th June at 3pm BST

In a recent SC survey, when asked 'Do you think your current network is secure?' 43 per cent of IS professionals said they were not sure. Technology developments such as multi-point cloud solutions, consumerisation, BYOD uptake and even Windows 8 are a major headache in network security for IT leaders. So what can be done? SC's latest webcast shares practical advice from industry experts. To secure your free place, please click here.

SC Whitepapers

Java security: Balancing existing testing platforms with open source solutions

In a rush to get new products out to market quickly, companies expose themselves to the risk of software failure. Java developers often turn to open source solutions to help protect themselves from risk. This new whitepaper explains how you can use your existing testing platforms alongside open source solutions to fix those issues related to both security and quality within your Java code. To download the paper for free, please click here.


DDoS and downtime: Considerations for risk management

The purpose of this paper is to start a conversation about the often overlooked risk of downtime caused by DDoS attacks and to provide sufficient content for risk managers to account for the DDoS threat as they evaluate risks to their day-to-day operations and long-term mission. To read the paper in full, please download it for free here.


Ponemon 2012 Global Encryption Trends Study

In Ponemon's recent Global Encryption Study, the organisation surveyed 4,205 information security professionals across seven countries to examine how encryption has evolved over the last eight years. The study focused on data protection priorities, budgeted expenditures for encryption and the types of encryption technologies involved, with the findings revealing some interesting insight into the relationship between encryption and its impact on the security position of organisations. To read the full report for free, please download it here.


Advanced spear phishing: The rise of industrial phishing attacks

With phishing still the most common form of attack, hackers are now engaging in industrial-scale phishing attacks that leverage sophisticated customisation and delivery techniques. Borrowing tactics from cloud computing and database marketing, this study looks at longline phishing - an advanced form of spear phishing, which has higher clickthrough and penetration rates than traditional attacks, potentially causing a higher risk to IT security departments across the world. To read the study for free, please click here.


Home | News | Products | Whitepapers | Jobs | Subscribe | Contact Us | About Us | Advertising | Sitemap | Editorial | Subscribe to our RSS feeds RSS

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in any form without prior authorization.

Your use of this website constitutes acceptance of Haymarket Media's Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions