TORONTO – Vendors have been driving home the importance of IT security for years, and while there is still much education to do, organizations are starting to get it.

“There are a number of security concerns around networking in general,” said Darren Hamilton, partner business manager at HP Canada.

Customers want a secure, reliable networking framework that will let them run services and applications. The one thing that has really changed about security in 2007, though, is that it’s now the customers bringing up security in conversations with vendors and channel partners, Hamilton said. They’re starting to talk about their security concerns and are asking how to address them.

Additionally, they’re looking for that trusted advisor who can provide a lot of the security consultation they need “and not just having the IT discussion,” Hamilton said. They want someone who can help them devise a security strategy, and that’s a trend that’s going to continue in 2008.

“Those discussions are really taking place now in greater numbers, and the thing that we’ve noticed over the course of the year is not everybody in the channel has a really sound security practice. Those partners that have it really have a competitive advantage out there,” Hamilton said.

Customers are more aware of the technologies, products and services available to them than ever before, and the role of the reseller is to help them decide what best suits their needs, he said.

One key area of security that will become increasingly important in 2008 is the move from IPsec to SSL technology, said John Dathan, director of enterprise sales in Canada for Juniper Networks. Customers need remote access available for a large number of users in a short period of time, such as when there’s a storm or even an epidemic that keeps workers from getting to the office.

“SSL allows them to do that very inexpensively,” Dathan said.

SSL migration will be driven 100 per cent by the partners, he explained. They’ll also be able to customize the SSL front-end for their customers very easily, which enables them to add value-add services on top of the technology sale.

Some channel partners are also starting to move towards offering hosted SSL, Dathan said. For some customers, it’s more economical to buy the capabilities as a hosted service rather than buying the infrastructure and hiring someone to manage it.

“It’s all about mobility, flexibility and end-user experience,” he said.

Network access control will also be an area that will see growth in 2008, Dathan said.

“When talking to customers across the country, we’re kind of going from interest to implementation in 2008,” Dathan said.

This column was written by Chris Talbot of ConnectIT

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