Open Source Featured Article

Sourcefire, an open source innovator and creator of SNORT, announced that the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NMEC) recently deployed the Sourcefire 3D System in an effort to protect confidential information and provide network visibility throughout its entire organization.

"The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children deals with life and death situations every day, and we need to ensure that our sensitive information is never compromised," said Steven Gelfound, Director of Information Technology at The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, in a Thursday statement.

Gelfound continued: "Because we deal with law enforcement agencies around the country, we needed a security solution that helps us share information with confidence. Sourcefire provides us with a complete system that prevents threats to critical information and delivers the visibility required for us to gain a true understanding of everything taking place on our network."

The Sourcefire 3D System is being used to monitor traffic from both internal and external sources across all NCMEC network segments, including its CyberTipline and Missing Children divisions.

The 3D System is blocking attacks and monitoring systems and traffic for potential risks, including spyware or malware due to its positioning at critical points on all of the segments.

To protect the information stored within the databases on its CyberTipline network, NCMEC is using Sourcefire RNA (Real-time Network Awareness) to identify all systems on the network and ensure that they comply with the organization’s security guidelines.

RNA also offers the ability to monitor the hosts each system in access to help ensure that critical information remains protected and confidential. As RNA monitors all traffic on the network, whether the system is located on the NCMEC network or it belongs to a law enforcement agency accessing the network with a VPN.

NCMEC can also verify that outsides are as secure as the internal team, so that threats are not introduced through trusted parties. If an intrusion or other risk is identified, the 3D System either blocks the threat or sends an instantaneous e-mail alert to provide critical information about the issue.

The NCMEC IT staff receives pertinent alerts that contain all of the information they need to determine the appropriate response. These smart alerts offer built-in context and few false positives to significantly reduce the effort required to monitor potential threats.

"The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children plays an essential role in protecting our nation's children, and as part of its mission, the organization must protect confidential information on a continual basis," said Tom McDonough, President and COO at Sourcefire, in Thursday’s statement.

 

McDonough went on: "The Sourcefire 3D System was designed to provide the visibility and proactive protection that organizations require to safeguard their most critical information, and we are proud to play even a small role in helping protect today's youth."

While we would like to think that such an organization as one that is formed with a sole purpose to protect children would be immune from outside threats, the reality is that every organization that operates a network is at risk.

 

One of the biggest challenges for organization throughout the world is that those responsible for malware and other security threats are working just as hard as those focused on developing solutions to protect networks and the information they contain.

To stay ahead of malicious attacks, companies such as Sourcefire must take a proactive approach to innovation. In doing so, they are much more likely to stay at least one step ahead of all threats.