ReefEdge plugs Cisco's wireless gaps
TechWorld.com - Cisco Systems Inc.'s security worries are good news for at least one company, ReefEdge Inc., a leading wireless LAN provider that has launched a product bundle designed to make the network giant's wireless systems more secure.
"We build in a level of security that lets you be at peace with your decision to go with Cisco," said ReefEdge's director of public relations, Brian Partridge. The Cisco Compatible Wireless Security (CCWS) package is aimed at bolstering Cisco-based WLANs on multiple sites and can be added without any other changes to the network.
"CCWS is being offered to multisite Cisco wireless LAN customers concerned with the potentially serious security issues recently discovered in Cisco's proprietary LEAP authentication protocol and WLAN management systems," said Partridge. Recent Cisco wireless vulnerabilities include the release of the ASLEAP hacking tool and Cisco's EAP-FAST response, criticized as proprietary; the discovery of a hard-coded password in Cisco's Wireless LAN Solutions Engine; and an SNMP vulnerability in Cisco's Aironet access points.
As Partridge explains it, Fort Lee, N.J.-based ReefEdge is the one for the job for two reasons. First, it has a high reputation for security: Last year, we reviewed its Connect Server CS100, which secures the Mobile IP technology Cisco favors for roaming between access points, in its SWAN wireless architecture. "We have the most secure wireless LAN system approach available on the market," said Partridge. "We have received FIPS 140 Level 2 certification for cryptography from the U.S. government. We are deployed in several military installations."
Second, although ReefEdge does sell a wireless switch, it doesn't require its own access points, as other vendors such as Trapeze Networks Inc., Aruba Wireless Networks Inc. and Airespace Inc. do. "We don't think of ourselves as a head-to-head competitor to Cisco," said Partridge. "We don't sell access points. We allow use of other vendors' access points, including Symbol [Technologies Inc.], 3Com [Corp.] and Netgear [Inc.].
"Some Cisco shops are all Cisco in every location," he said. "They need to leverage their existing investment in access points." In other words, users who have coughed up about $800 for a Cisco access point will want to carry on using it, even if it needs additional equipment to make it secure.
ReefEdge is dividing its marketing effort equally between Cisco WLAN customers and new non-Cisco installations, said Partridge. Given the size of Cisco's market dominance, selling extra wireless equipment to Cisco wireless customers is apparently as big an opportunity as selling wireless to those new to (and skeptical of) enterprise WLANs.
ReefEdge comes



- Excel 2010 Cheat Sheet
- Register for this Computerworld Insider Cheat Sheet and gain access to hundreds of premium content articles, guides, product reviews and more.
- Digital Transformation: Creating New Business Models Where Digital Meets Physical
- Individuals and businesses alike are embracing the digital revolution. Social networks and digital devices are being used to engage government, businesses and civil...
- Empowering Your Mobile Worker
- Today's most productive employees are mobile, and your company's IT strategy must be ready to support them with 24/7 access to the business...
- An Interactive Guide: Bring Your Own Device
- BYOD presents significant security and management challenges to IT departments who want to take advantage of the trend, but still protect corporate assets....
- Calculating ROI for Mobile Client Acceleration
- As mobile devices continue to expand in business use, ensuring these devices have optimal performance is becoming an IT imperative. This EMA paper...
- Tablet Computing Without Compromise
- This paper provides an overview of how and why that migration-from any old tablet to Windows tablets-came to be. All Mobile and Wireless White Papers
- Live Webcast
North Pole to South Seas: Overcoming the Pitfalls of remote Performance - In today's always-on world, connectivity is a business requirement. You need the tools that allow you to operate as if you were on...
- Supporting Mobile Productivity With A Limited IT Budget
- Join us and hear from Kaseya mobile IT management experts as we discuss core strategies for supporting the mobile revolution on a shoestring...
- North Pole to South Seas: Overcoming the Pitfalls of remote Performance
- In today's always-on world, connectivity is a business requirement. You need the tools that allow you to operate as if you were on...
- Unified Communications 101
- What's the best way to implement a unified communications solution for your organization?
- QNX® and BlackBerry® PlayBook™ Tablet.
- RIM's multi-processor, multi-tasking BlackBerry PlayBook runs a new Tablet OS powered by QNX, a bullet-proof microkernel operating system. This track will take a...
- A Close Look at Tablets
- Learn More All Mobile and Wireless Webcasts