Firm aims to simplify internal security

SSH Communications launched a security middleware platform on Friday that will bolster internal security by providing secure pathways between enterprise applications, servers and users.

SSH Tectia is unlike traditional SSL-based solutions because it does not require any additional hardware, changes to the corporate IP infrastructure or application development -- legacy or not. The company said this will save money that would otherwise be spent on training and development.

SSH's director of global marketing, Janne Saarikko, told ZDNet UK that traditionally, enterprises secure the perimeter of their network but do not bother protecting the traffic inside their firewall. This, he explained, is because it would be very expensive and time-consuming. "If a company has a department with 500 people using a legacy application and you add security features so that the interface changes, all the users will require training, which costs a lot of money," he said.

Saarikko said that SSH Tectia is a layer that lies between business applications and the IT infrastructure. It takes traffic from an application and puts it into a secure, encrypted tunnel and delivers it wherever it needs to go.

He admits this may sound like an IPSEC or SSL VPN solution, but is adamant that it is completely different. "There are technologies that tell a similar story, but our solution is unique. IPSEC is not used for internal security and SSL-based solutions typically require some hardware in front of each server," he said, pointing out that adding hardware to 900 servers is also going to be costly.

Additionally, he said that adding SSL to applications would not only require changes to the application, but also to the company's IP infrastructure.