Cisco rolls out security upgrades at RSA

Cisco is making a round of announcements today of new products and services that are aimed at boosting network security systems and the delivery of cloud security services. The company noted that, in these offerings, the line between client-based and cloud-based services is beginning to blur - as Cisco thinks it should.

Bottom line: a company shouldn't care if the products or service is hosted locally or on the cloud. So long as its safe - and that's what Cisco is promising - then IT departments need not worry about those issues, company executives said.

Today's announcement, made in conjunction with the RSA Security conference in San Francisco, comes at a time "when collaboration and mobility technologies are redefining how, when and where business gets done."

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One of the challenges comes in the form of protecting data and communications as a growing number of employees tap into a company's network and other resources from outside the company's walls. The news comes a day before CEO John Chambers is slated to address the conference with a message of "Collaborate with Confidence."

Cisco's announcements include:

• Cisco Security Cloud Services, which ties the cloud and the local network together to secure collaborative discussions, allowing companies to deliver security from multiple networks and apps.
• Software that allows threat data - obtained and captured from a variety of sources - into dynamic updates, pushing intelligence such as "reputation scores" to the network's security backbone to ward off threats faster.
• New software offerings, including Botnet traffic filters for Cisco appliances to more accurately identify infected clients and VPN enhancements
• Cisco SAFE, a security blueprint that helps organizations plan, design and deploy networked security services, including remote offices and data centers.