I believe that UTM is a single point of failure

Unlike some of his peers, Bhathavastsalu does not think that the days of
the standalone security device is over. On the contrary, he advocates to
customers to either opt for a standalone device or an unified threat management
(UTM) keeping their need or budget in mind and not merely what vendors might
tell them about the product's functionality

What is your take about on managed services business (MSP), which is
something most security vendors are talking about?

Check Point has had MSP services for a while, but we had to wait for the
market to mature before we could introduce it in India. Security is something
that most customers are very concerned about and they are all the more worried
about outsourcing it. This is also because India does not have any strong
compliance laws.

But now the maturity has seeped in. Customers have also realized that rather
than taking products from various vendors it's better to have one solution
partner for all their infrastructure needs. They have also realized that this
single partner might charge them an additional 10 percent for the services, but
he takes complete onus for their network.

So now we see that there is more of an acceptance about MSP and we are also
going to ride the crest of this wave with our MSP partners.

Unified threat management (UTM) or standalone devices-which do you think
of the two will cannibalize the other?

I believe that UTM is a single point of failure. The best analogy to explain
that is that of a mobile phone which offer cameras, music players, email access,
GPS, etc. But the most important usage of the phone is still to make and receive
calls. If that function is not there then it does not have utility.

Using the same example, you might use your mobile phone to capture photos of
your kids. But if it's their wedding you will not risk taking the photos on your
mobile phone; you will arrange for a professional photographer to cover the
event. The reason is simple. When your need is critical, you opt for
professional services. Thus, a standalone solution UTM is not enough. Customers
need to understand when they need to buy UTM and when they should go for stand
alone solutions.

We always advise our customers to opt for a security product that best
addresses their need, irrespective of whether it is a standalone device or a UTM.
We tell our customers that in their data center, they should have a standalone
solution. Now due to budgetary reasons the customer might not be able to afford
a standalone device at all its branches. In such a case it can opt for a UTM in
the branches while securing its main data center with a standalone device to
minimise their risk of failure.

What will be Check Point's focus this year?

This year, we believe that security appliance is the way to go. Checkpoint
is primarily a software company, though we are bullish on hardware. We give
customers an open choice, which means that he should be able to take the
solution only on software or software plus OPSEC platform (Nokia, Nortel,
Crossbeam or Intel based server) where they can buy the server and Checkpoint
software and make it a firewall appliance.

We are also giving customers an opportunity to buy the complete security
appliance. This aside, they can also use our solutions on appliances integrated
by vendors like IBM and HP. So the customer and the partner has the option of
going for the software or hardware or integrated appliance.

What about endpoint security, which has come to be regarded as an area
that most security vendors are bullish about?

We realized that loss of data would be one of the biggest security threats
to customers in the future. When a user is connected to the network he can be
monitored. But when he is out of the network then there should be some solution
which will stop him from accessing various domains.

This is why around two years ago, we acquired Pointsec. We were also the
first company to come out with a single desktop agent which takes care of data
security. Seeing this, our competitors also started acquiring similar companies.
They are good in what they are doing, but they lack the total vision for
security business.

Administrators of large enterprises, which have over several thousand users
globally, find it challenging to ensure that these users have the right security
policies. With our solutions the administrator has more control in reporting and
managing the network. This makes it easier for them to know if and when someone
is not adhering to the security policies.

Check Point is three generations ahead of its competition in management,
which is all about consolidating, analyzing and having a clear security report.

What is the biggest challenge you faced in India while positioning
Checkpoint successfully?

There was a time when customers would ask us that they were investing
millions of rupees but did not see any tangible product. This is because it was
the same server, and we would just give a license and it would work. That was
the biggest challenge that we faced, when customers said that they wanted to see
some products before they would pay.

There was also a time when distributors would say that they were happy with
our solution and demanded a bigger box so that they can justify their management
about making the purchase.

Vinita Bhatia

vinitavs@cybermedia.co.in