FORT LEE, N.J., Nov. 15, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Whale Communications, the leading SSL VPN vendor, announced on Monday that its remote access solution allowed enterprises to detect whether the Google Desktop Search tool is running and remediate.
"For our clients, many of whom are Fortune and Global 1000 enterprises, security is paramount. They can't afford to leave cached information behind," said Daniel Steiner, Whale's president.
Google recently released the BETA version of its Desktop Search. Google's website compares the functioning of the tool, which provides full text search over email, computer files, chats and viewed web pages to a "photographic" memory.
Dana Hendrickson, President of SSL VPN Central, an analytical research portal of the Breakaway Marketing Group, praised Whale's quick response to this new vulnerability. "Security Managers beware. Using Desktop Search on remote devices would potentially expose huge amounts of confidential information to unauthorized viewing. The ability to block its usage currently sets Whale apart from other SSL VPN gateway vendors."
Enterprises are widely adopting SSL VPNs as a convenient and cost-effective method to deliver remote access to employees and partners from any web-connected browser, be it a home computer, Internet Kiosk, hotel business center or customer site.
"This raised a security red flag for us," said Dan Harman of Lewis Group, one of the nations largest privately held real estate development companies.
Harman, who oversees Lewis Group's remote access, said, "We rely on our SSL VPN to execute multi-million dollar deals from anywhere. The thought that this information or related information may be left behind on a computer not under our control was unacceptable.
"Our SSL VPN vendor Whale Communications let us know that we could immediately remediate to ensure that no information would be left behind. They also informed us of additional desktop indexing tools that they have identified and are working to remedy as they pose similar risks."
Whale Communications' unique Application Aware(tm) approach allowed it to quickly and effectively mitigate the risk of cached information posed by the Google Desktop Search tool.
"We have identified more than ten additional desktop indexing tools active in the market that pose likely security issues in regards to caching confidential information," said Noam Ben-Yochanan, CTO of Whale. "While many vendors' products routinely clean the temporary files, the type of caching by these desktop search tools is different and requires a different approach. We want to ensure that our clients will not inadvertently expose private corporate information."
Whale's President Daniel Steiner added, "We are happy to remain at the forefront of product development in the SSL VPN space and to quickly offer a solution that allows them to continue providing remote access with peace of mind. This ensures that the productivity gains the enterprises are receiving will not wane by having to shut off the SSL VPN altogether because of the caching issue."
About Whale Communications
Whale Communications, the leading enterprise-class SSL VPN vendor, is enabling companies to provide employees and partners secure access to corporate data and applications from any web browser. Its award-winning solutions have been securing enterprises worldwide since it was founded in 1998. Privately held, Whale is funded by prominent venture firms and industry leaders, including Goldman Sachs, Soros Private Equity Partners and the BRM Group, the founding investor of Check Point Software Technologies. The company is headquartered in Fort Lee, New Jersey and has international offices in Israel, the United Kingdom and Germany. Whale Communications, e-Gap, Application Aware, Attachment Wiper, Whale and the Whale logo are trademarks of Whale Communications Ltd. All other trademarks are property of their respective holders. For more information about Whale visit: www.whalecommunications.com.