SLIEDRECHT, The Netherlands, Jan. 28, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- 4Sure.IT, a specialized subsidiary of the listed Unit 4 Agresso NV enters into a co-operation with Microsoft bCentral.nl. Under this agreement, bCentral.nl, Microsoft's portal for small and medium-sized businesses, will also offer 4Sure.IT's services. This enables bCentral.nl to better meet the ICT demands of the small-scale business user. 4Sure.IT is the leading company in the Benelux to offer a complete solution for managed security and internet services and has a clear lead on the competition in this new field of technology.
The many years of experience of Unit 4 Agresso's employees with internet and security software, make 4Sure.IT a leader in this internet & security area.
Since the launch in April 2001 hundreds of customers with a multitude of systems in use, switched to a managed security solution provided by 4Sure.IT. The number of customers that switches to a managed anti-virus solution is rapidly increasing. 4Sure.IT makes use of VirusScan ASaP, software from market leader McAfee. This software application is installed at small and medium-sized business, and managed and kept up to date by local IT and security specialists, all through the internet.
"We are very pleased that our pioneering work and accompanying strategic investments in managed security services and the forthcoming successes with this new generation of security solutions have now resulted in this agreement with Microsoft (bCentral.nl)," said Harry de Smedt, COO of Unit 4 Agresso. "Viruses are a constant threat to all systems and all software and it is good to see that Microsoft is taking steps together with partners to take up the challenge of withstanding these threats. When a business partner opts to co-operate with 4Sure.IT, he opts for a unique quality service and expertise and therefore for a long-term partnership," concluded De Smedt.
"Microsoft decided on co-operating with 4Sure.IT, since bCentral.nl's target group, small and medium-sized business, is in urgent need of complete protection of the desktops against viruses without the usual hassle of installing, updating and managing the software," explained Hans van der Meer, Product Manager at Central.nl. "Through its specialist subsidiary 4Sure.IT, Unit 4 Agresso is the most important company with extensive experience in hosting and managing an anti-virus solution for desktops. Microsoft and 4Sure.IT will jointly develop marketing activities to make the managed anti-virus solutions an even greater success."
"Viruses and worms are a threat to all customers and all platforms. We cannot prevent hackers from writing malicious code and distributing these through the internet. What we can and will do is provide our customers with the necessary tools, technology and support to protect their systems," stated Van der Meer.
Marcel Hartgerink, General Manager of 4Sure.IT, is very pleased with the agreed co-operation and believes that together with Microsoft bCentral.nl he can provide managed security services to the small and medium-sized business in the Netherlands. "Since 4Sure.IT is fully integrated with Microsoft's bCentral.nl, small and medium-sized businesses that are already registered with bCentral.nl, can activate 4Sure.IT's managed security services by simply pressing a button," explained Hartgerink.
Acceleration of security incidents Recent figures of the American CERT (Computer Emergency Response Team) show that the number of security incidents in 2001 was two and a half times the number that was recorded in 2000. In 1999 only 9,859 incidents occurred, in 2000 this number had risen to 21,756 and the past year no less than 52,658 incidents were recorded. The CERT counts all security problems that were reported, including virus attacks and security leaks in the software.
The CERT specialists expect that the number of security incidents will keep on growing at the same speed.
In 2001 4Sure.IT detected a total of 184,618 viruses. This comes down to almost one virus every two minutes. The number of detections in the first three weeks of 2002 is sufficient reason to believe that the amount of security incidents will keep on growing in the years to come.
4Sure.IT, a Unique Overall Solution for SME's
The conventional anti-virus and security solutions require a lot of operational interaction from the user himself. The solutions that provide automatic updates through the internet meant a small improvement. But these solutions do not provide good reporting nor the management of the installed anti-virus solutions. For this the user still needs trained and costly employees. Small and medium-sized businesses often do not dispose of such employees. Therefore, a solution that is installed, managed and updated by 4Sure.IT is the best solution for this market segment! 4Sure.IT is part of the listed software company Unit 4 Agresso NV. 4Sure.IT is the leading organization in the Benelux to offer a complete solution for managed security and internet services.
You can find this press release and other (press) information on the websites: www.Unit4agresso.com, www.Microsoft.nl, www.4Sure.IT, and www.bcentral.nl.