McAfee looks to ease security mgmt.

McAfee upgrades ePolicy and rolls out software integration support

McAfee Monday began shipping the fourth version of its ePolicy Orchestrator (ePO) management console and also introduced a software development program that lets developers integrate third-party security products under ePO.

McAfee’s Windows-based ePO 4.0 has added support for McAfee’s IntruShield, Data Loss Prevention Host and Total Protection endpoint products. That leaves McAfee’s mobile-security software products the only ones outside control of ePO for the enterprise.

“But for our mobile products, that’s coming soon next year,” says Christopher Bolin, CTO and head of product development at McAfee.

To continue reading, register here and become an Insider. You'll get free access to premium content from CIO, Computerworld, CSO, InfoWorld, and Network World. See more Insider content or sign in.

McAfee Monday began shipping the fourth version of its ePolicy Orchestrator (ePO) management console and also introduced a software development program that lets developers integrate third-party security products under ePO.

McAfee’s Windows-based ePO 4.0 has added support for McAfee’s IntruShield, Data Loss Prevention Host and Total Protection endpoint products. That leaves McAfee’s mobile-security software products the only ones outside control of ePO for the enterprise.

“But for our mobile products, that’s coming soon next year,” says Christopher Bolin, CTO and head of product development at McAfee.

McAfee ePO, now in its seventh year, has undergone revisions over time aimed at bringing management of McAfee’s products, as well as some of Symantec’s security products, under a common framework for generating reports aimed at audit and compliance. The goal has been to eliminate the need for multiple agents and consoles in McAfee security products. The fourth edition of ePO also lets managers opt to use Microsoft Active Directory to leverage security policies already in place.

“It’s moved from a client-based to a Web-based console,” says Kevin LeBlanc, group product marketing manager. With ePO 4.0, McAfee is introducing real-time dashboards, LeBlanc said, and an automated workflow that can be used to correlate data and in some instances, identify corporate systems that need remediation and generate a ticket for it without a manager having to do it manually.

McAfee is also taking the first step to open up ePO for more general use as a management and audit-compliance framework by introducing a way for software developers to build support for ePO into third-party security products.

McAfee, which calls the program the Security Innovation Alliance, says it includes a policy-definition engine and compliance and auditing software development toolkit and application programming interfaces that can be used to bring third-party products under the ePO umbrella. McAfee plans to make more announcements regarding the Security Innovation Alliance in the coming months.

Read more about security in Network World's Security section.