Integrating anti-spam

Although some of the best-selling points for a content filtering tool lie in reducing unwanted e-mail, increasing productivity and avoiding liability, IT administrators` worst nightmares remain those about highly destructive code entering through e-mail, disrupting business and potentially destroying valuable data.

In an international survey by Windows and .NET Magazine, IT administrators revealed they want to block 80% to 90% of all spam and reduce false positives to between .5% and 4%. (In my experience, SA companies have even higher expectations.) The survey also revealed that one of their main concerns was how well a package integrated into existing infrastructure, how flexible it is, how easily they could get it up and running (including fine-tuning), and how much administrative time it absorbed.

Anti-spam in action

Once integrated, an anti-spam and content filtering solution should not only leverage the enterprise`s technical environment, but also support its policies and simplify the IT administration.

A content filtering solution that actually leverages your current infrastructure (e.g. ActiveDirectory and Exchange) simplifies content-control efforts. Even with a solution that integrates well with your infrastructure, consistent policies are needed across the board for all elements of content security to work effectively. Establishing consistent policies involves detailed initial planning and thorough documentation.

In addition, it is important to have a single management interface to integrate the many admin functions of the network. Because those functions can be quite disparate, ranging from user account management to resource management, to monitoring everything in between, a single tool managing it all is the ultimate solution in network management.

So IT administrators also want a tool that reduces, and doesn`t increase, their involvement in e-mail management and monitoring. One of the ongoing frustrations of trying to control content is the need for someone to go through those e-mail messages that fall into the grey area of what isn`t easily identifiable as legitimate or otherwise.

Administrators want to be able to set up a tool, adjust it initially, and then make changes only occasionally. Features (e.g. reports) that let them easily place potential content management concerns in the right corporate hands are also much-needed.

Ideally, IT administrators don`t want to be responsible for the lost business that can occur if false positives are not handled correctly. They want content filtering tools that handle potential false positives easily and place decision-making in the users` hands. For example, a tool that quarantines such e-mail messages and lets users go through them can reduce IT`s burden and the potential for lost business.

The future of security

Threats to an organisation`s content security will increase in number and change in nature. A key element of protection will be your anti-spam and secure content. Solutions that are flexible and extensible from a vendor that regularly updates its solution to meet changing threats can help IT managers achieve the level of secure content needed for continued security.

The security scene is a shifting target, with malicious attackers regularly finding new attack vectors along with new or mutated attack payloads. In this environment, it`s not enough to defend against known attacks; you must attempt to prepare for as-yet-unknown assaults on your enterprise.