IBM to step up data security services

BOSTON: IBM, the world's largest technology services company, said Thursday that it would spend $1.5 billion next year to develop and market products that help customers secure data and comply with new rules for guarding information.
International Business Machines announced its plans about a year after it acquired Internet Security Systems for $1.23 billion. IBM has integrated that business into its services division.
IBM said it would sell security products alongside technology services, hardware and software, posing a challenge to companies that specialize in security. Those companies, including McAfee, Check Point Software Technologies and Websense, say they have an edge over big technology companies like IBM because they are able to focus on security.
IBM counters that it is able to integrate security into every aspect of a company's technology systems operations, giving it the edge. "Security is broken," Val Rahmani, general manager of IBM's infrastructure management services, said by telephone. "There has been a perfect storm of threats."
IBM, based in Armonk, New York, expanded its security products last year by buying Internet Security Systems. The company is challenging EMC and Hewlett-Packard in sales of corporate security services, which protect everything from desktop computers to data centers.
"IBM is making key advances by using its ISS acquisition to provide a global view of security," said Eric Domage, an analyst at IDC.
As part of its security plan, IBM is putting 200 researchers in locations like Tokyo, Zurich and India. A partner, PGP, supplies encryption software for laptops and mobile handheld devices, while another, Fidelis Security Systems, monitors Internet gateways to prevent leaks of personal and classified information. A board that includes members from IBM's services, software and hardware units is overseeing the effort, Rahmani said.
The Payment Card Industry, a group that represents credit and debit card issuers, imposed new security standards after a series of security breaches.
As businesses adapt to stricter rules, technology security companies are racing to help, said Avivah Litan, an analyst with Gartner. "Almost every vendor that has anything to sell in the security market is positioning their products and services to help retailers meet PCI compliance," Litan said.