Las Vegas– May 21, 2007 – Newbury Networks Inc ., the Location Systems Company™, today announced the introduction of a new location application, RF Firewall™. Newbury is demonstrating RF Firewall along with its other location applications such as Active Asset™ for real-time asset tracking and the Newbury Location Appliance™ at this week’s Interop Las Vegas 2007 (Newbury booth #2341).
Newbury Networks’ RF Firewall is an application-based appliance enabling access control and policy enforcement for wireless LANs (WLANs). RF Firewall creates a secure perimeter or virtual firewall around an enterprise’s facilities to actively prevent neighboring users or skilled hackers from gaining unauthorized access to the Wi-Fi networking resources. Together with the Newbury Location Appliance, RF Firewall provides the industry’s most accurate and precise Wi-Fi location tracking and scalability for the enterprise.
“Location-based authentication has been a market-driving force behind Newbury’s success and makes RF Firewall a natural addition to our suite of applications running on top of the Newbury Location Appliance, and those of our OEM partners,” said Michael Maggio, president and CEO, Newbury Networks. “As location becomes a core utility for wireless LANs, the need to provision and control access to various mobile units, such as Wi-Fi phones, asset tags, medical equipment, PDA’s and laptops will drive the need for the RF Firewall appliance.”
A number of highly-publicized events such as the recent TJX security breach which was initiated by a wireless attack from outside a Marshall’s department store underscore the need for RF Firewall’s capabilities for stopping outsiders and potential hackers from penetrating network resources and compromising valuable business-critical data.
“While wireless LAN security has improved with stronger encryption, infrastructure enhancements and wireless IDS, certain vulnerabilities remain with new 802.11-enabled devices such as phones and PDAs,” said Stan Schatt, Vice President, Broadband & Wireless Networks, ABI Research. “There’s a need for an extra layer of authentication to bullet-proof the enterprise wireless infrastructure.”
RF Firewall Features and Benefits
Newbury’s RF Firewall includes the following features and benefits:
Location-based Access Control– RF Firewall creates a virtual location-based firewall around facilities and prevents unauthorized access from attackers attempting to break into a wireless network using high-gain antennas, spoofed MAC addresses, broken encryption keys, stolen credentials, and stolen devices. Using location as a part of authentication procedures keeps outsiders off enterprise networks and prevents systematic attacks that are commonly mounted from the outside.
Location-based Policy Enforcement– RF Firewall allows IT/security personnel to define, manage and control a hierarchy of network administration and security policies. Define strict access and authentication policies based on physical boundaries – to distinguish between inside from outside, public spaces and even no Wi-Fi zones. Or, create security policies for different user groups (guests, human resources, executive team, etc.), different devices and even different times of the day – enforced across various locations, buildings and managed centrally.
Reporting and Authentication History– RF Firewall tracks user and 802.11-based device movements based on authentication requests to access the wireless network. A complete, detailed device list and the history of all devices on the network including attempts to connect to the network are displayed.
Integration with Standard WLAN Infrastructure– RF Firewall can be used with a wide range of sensors or access points from industry-standard WLAN infrastructures such as Trapeze Networks’ Smart Mobile™. By integrating with these leading wireless networking systems, RF Firewall lowers the total cost of ownership - eliminating the need for dedicated sensors.
Pricing and Availability
RF Firewall list price is $7,995 (U.S. and Canada) with commercial availability in 30 days.
About Newbury Networks
Newbury Networks, The Location Systems Company™, enables enterprises to locate, manage and secure applications running over wireless LANs (WLANs). Newbury's solutions provide unprecedented security, management and real-time asset tracking through its patented location-based technology. Newbury's location-based solutions have won numerous awards and accolades including Network World's Best of the New Data Center and Best of Tests™. Newbury Networks was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Boston. For more information visit www.newburynetworks.com.
