RIYADH, 20 April 2004 — E-mail — I can’t function without it, but these days it’s really hard to cope with it. I’m spending too much time killing SPAM. I can’t open attachments anymore because it’s so hard to decide who really is a trusted source. My e-mail address has been spoofed, or taken over, and used to send malicious code and obnoxious messages to computers all over the world. Then, even worse, I receive hundreds of messages back from networks and individuals complaining about those viruses and nasty mail — which are now attributed to me. Few people believe me when I write to tell them how I’ve become a victim of the very technology that I embraced so eagerly.
As Dr. Eyas S. Al-Hajery, head, Internet Services Unit, King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology so rightly pointed out in his comments on Sunday, security was not an issue when the Internet was established in 1969. E-mail was demonstrated in 1972 and became the killer app of the next two decades. The Internet was created as a network for communication and resource sharing for scientists and researchers — individuals who would never have considered damaging something so useful to their productivity. Unfortunately, times have changed. That change can be directly traced to the first computer viruses which were found “in the wild” in the early 1980s. “Now, there are all sorts of malicious activities using e-mail as a gateway to networks,” he said.
Dr. Al-Hajery had lent his presence to the launch of the second version of the first secure corporate e-mail management solution developed in Saudi Arabia, by a Saudi company for the Saudi market. Secure MailMatrix (SMM), developed using Sun’s Java technology, has been created by the professionals of Riyadh-based IT security company, IT Matrix (itmatrix.com). The solution was in development for 2-1/2 years, with SMM Version One in use by select customers for 15 months.
“We wanted to test Secure MailMatrix in real world situations, so some of our long-term customers lent their networks to the task,” said Mirza Asrar Baig, CEO, IT Matrix. “After upgrading and enhancing the solution based on customer feedback and our own hands-on experience, we are now ready to release Secure MailMatrix Version 2. We feel very confident in our solution’s ability to handle all the challenges of corporate e-mail, so the time is right for us to offer Secure MailMatrix to the general corporate market in the Kingdom.”
While most software development in Saudi Arabia is in the area of applications, IT Matrix has become the first company in the Kingdom to turn its focus and resources to the protection of technology. Responding to customer concerns about the lack of adequate, customized protection for corporate mail systems, IT Matrix developed SMM as a targeted solution to enable total control of e-mail resources for businesses through the enterprise level.
“As a company we have been providing corporate e-mail solutions for more than five years. Feedback from many customers convinced us that the generic e-mail security solutions on the market were inadequate to serve local needs,” said Baig. “Our solution, Secure MailMatrix, integrates technology, people and process to create a methodology which effectively and efficiently addresses the challenges of secure corporate e-mail management.”
“I want to emphasize that Secure MailMatrix is not a product like SPAM blockers or mail filters,” Baig said. “Secure MailMatrix is a total solution, in the form of an e-mail firewall protecting your mail servers, which for the first time allows businesses to control every aspect of the corporate mail system, proactively rather than reflexively.”
What does proactive control imply? Through the harnessing of proprietary technology, SMM empowers users to manage and filter incoming e-mail from the Internet and then forward only legitimate e-mail to the corporate mail servers, based on defined policies. Mail that does not meet specified parameters is rejected. This enhances corporate IT security as only approved communications are allowed access to the corporate mail server. As for outgoing communications, similar policies are implemented and only legitimate e-mails are allowed to be routed to the Internet. Corporate mail access is controlled and system use is monitored and logged. Yearly audits by IT Matrix staff ensure that corporate mail policies are being upheld.
SMM incorporates three primary components: Mail Management, SPAM Control and Security in a single, integrated solution. In addition to enhancing the corporate mail environment, SMM has been shown to add value in ways that are not readily apparent. SMM brings down the total cost of ownership of the corporate e-mail system. SMM reduces both internal and external abuse of the corporate e-mail system. And, for the first time, SMM allows corporate management total control of the corporate e-mail environment.
SMM can be set up in any network setting. SMM options allow the technology to be customized for environments from the small business to the enterprise level. IT Matrix is offering SMM through a subscription that includes all needed licenses and services to ensure optimal performance at the installed user base.
“We are promoting this inclusive subscription as it is our experience that without the availability of the bundled services and technologies as a part of the Secure MailMatrix solution, the maximum return on corporate IT investment will not be realized,” explained Sohail Ejaz, marketing manager, IT Matrix.
SMM requires 2-7 days to be fully operational, depending on the size and complexity of the installation. There is absolutely no interference with the corporate e-mail system during this time. Only after quality checks are completed, policy reviews are in place and system integration is assured is the SMM e-mail firewall activated.
“One of the major drivers behind developing Secure MailMatrix was to ensure that the customer’s needs should be met, rather than having the customer adjust his business to adopt our solution,” Ejaz asserted. “Keeping this significant factor in mind, Secure MailMatrix has been built in fully-customizable modules.”
For example, network administrators can decide exactly the set of rules that will determine whether a mail is accepted or rejected by SMM. Even if a mail is initially accepted based on information contained in its header, it will still have to pass by the SPAM module with content filtering applied on the body of the mail. Here also a customizable rule-based filter is available for the user to define rules as per their specific needs. These rules may be defined for text strings or file extensions. Take for instance if a critical alert is issued for a new virus in the wild, for which the anti-virus organizations do not yet have the signature. In this case, the first line of defense would be to create rules to identify the virus by text strings or attached file type/file name, and block them from entering the network.
SMM also has a filter for pornography. This filter is basically an image analyzer, which can detect the contours and area of skin in an image. The user has the choice of selecting a qualitative threshold based on which an image can be marked as undesirable and therefore blocked from entering or leaving the company’s network.
In addition to all the other modules, SMM produces detailed logs, reports and analyses. SMM builds a database of all headers both for incoming and outgoing mails. The user has a choice of selecting report formats from the customizable options that can also be reflected in graphical reports. Moreover there is an onscreen analysis tool, which provides the facility for the user to create queries and analyze results. This data can be exported to any particular format that may be needed by corporate management.
As word of the success of this new mail management solution has spread, companies from Europe are already contacting IT Matrix in the hope of representing SMM in their markets. For the present time, IT Matrix is holding back on moving into geographies outside Saudi Arabia. Baig said that this is because the company has realized that there is a pressing need to make the solution available as an appliance so the implementation can be more effectively managed.
“Appliances are systems built for a focused purpose. In that way the system only has to have the essential hardware components and operating system that are needed by that particular application. This greatly increases the performance and resilience of that system,” Baig explained. “That is of high importance for a security solution facing the Internet. Considering this importance and understanding the value, IT Matrix is already working on rolling out a Secure MailMatrix appliance using SUN Microsystems rack servers and Linux as the operating system. There is a global trend of using the Linux OS for the appliance, for the simple reason of its robustness and security being much better than Microsoft’s OS.”
Sun Microsystems is of course delighted with the success of IT Matrix’s mail management solution. At the launch of SMM Version 2, Graham Porter, marketing manager, Sun Microsystems Middle East & North Africa, said: “Saudi Arabia is a core market for Java development in the Middle East region, and advanced security solutions such as those being developed by IT Matrix are a testament to Java’s growing popularity as a platform here. Given IT Matrix’s strong track record with enterprises in the Kingdom and the increased demand for security and reliability of e-mail systems, the Java-based Secure MailMatrix solution is set to fill an important market need in Saudi Arabia.”
