Verizon Business a leading global provider of IT, communications, security and network solutions, and McAfee, Inc. the world’s largest dedicated security technology company, announced today a global strategic alliance to provide integrated security solutions to businesses and government agencies worldwide.
Through this agreement, Verizon Business will offer McAfee’s entire line of enterprise security products and services while McAfee taps Verizon Business’ data centre outsourcing and expert consulting and managed services capabilities. Additionally, the companies will jointly develop a suite of next-generation, cloud-based managed security services.
The agreement between Verizon Business and McAfee extends significant value to enterprise clients by providing comprehensive world-class security solutions and services, including new cloud-based offerings. Building on both companies’ success in technology and security, McAfee and Verizon Business can deliver solutions that effectively meet enterprise and government security challenges ahead, especially as more communications functions move to the “cloud,” or network, to take advantage of faster implementation, enhanced security and lower costs.
“This strategic agreement with McAfee enables us to drive even more complete and integrated IT solutions to enterprises across the world,” said Kerry Bailey, senior vice president of Verizon Business global solutions. “Verizon Business will be able to expand and more fully touch every facet of enterprise security so that enterprises can confidently do business in this digital age. Our newly expanded and next-generation cloud capabilities will enable organizations to better use security as a strategic tool and business enabler.”
“This agreement underscores the importance of delivering comprehensive security solutions to meet the needs of business and government clients,” said David Scholtz, senior vice president of worldwide strategic alliances at McAfee. “The complexities of today’s threats and turbulent economic times call for agreements of this kind; where products from multiple providers are combined to help improve our customers’ investments and control their operational costs.”
Multi-Faceted Agreement Benefits Enterprises
The new agreement includes the following components:
Verizon Business now offers the full complement of McAfee enterprise security solutions to its diverse client base through Verizon’s customer premises equipment (CPE) catalog. The new security offerings broaden the choice of world-class security solutions available to Verizon Business’ customers while helping McAfee significantly expand its global distribution channel.
Starting this fall, Verizon Business will offer McAfee’s PCI (Payment Card Industry) compliance services to banks and other organizations that support merchants that handle fewer than 20,000 e-commerce transactions or up to 1 million credit card transactions each per year. This group of retailers, known as Level 4 merchants, is at the greatest risk for a breach and represents 99 percent of all merchants and approximately one-third of all credit card transactions. Previously, Verizon Business PCI compliance services were focused on larger-volume merchants and associated banks.
McAfee customers will have access to Verizon Business’ network of 1,200 security professionals who can help design, implement and integrate holistic security solutions worldwide.
Together, McAfee and Verizon Business will offer a comprehensive portfolio of managed security services (MSS) to enterprises, leveraging the strength of Verizon Business’ MSS offerings and McAfee’s technology.
Verizon Business will provide data centre outsourcing services to McAfee. Verizon Business will help McAfee consolidate its data centres, enabling McAfee to further improve the 24/7 management of its Web hosting operations and better position the company to deliver cloud-based solutions.
Verizon Business and McAfee will jointly develop and market a suite of next-generation, cloud-based managed security solutions, expanding Verizon Business’ current portfolio of cloud-based security solutions.
Next Generation of Cloud-Based Security Products
The next-generation, cloud-based managed solutions that are being developed under the agreement will leverage Verizon’s leading managed security services platform, global IP infrastructure, advanced security operation centres, expansive footprint of data centres and McAfee’s world-class security technology powered by its Global Threat Intelligence.
The new security services will be managed by Verizon Business and operated in the cloud. The services will include a broad selection of security technologies, including firewalls, intrusion prevention services, anti-malware, content control and Secure Socket Layer (SSL) virtual private network (VPN).
Ideal for highly distributed businesses, these new solutions will offer enterprises a number of advantages, including strong security included with their IP connectivity, tighter security integration with other protected assets, and enhanced flexibility. These services are well- suited for the small-to-medium enterprise, large enterprise and government agencies.
Verizon and McAfee will offer these new solutions in North America, South America, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.
