Unified Communications

When Microsoft launched its new Unified Communications (News - Alert) product line, the potential impact on businesses was immediately obvious — users would be able to easily access corporate directories, presence information, and collaboration features from anywhere and on a variety of devices. 

 

There is no question, Office Communication Server 2007, Office Communicator 2007, and the other elements of the Microsoft (News - Alert) solution, will enable communications between people and organizations, regardless of medium, platform, device, or location. It represents a significant shift in the way people are able to interact.

 

At the same time, however, new access and means of communication will require new security policies, to ensure both network integrity and policy compliance. With new, advanced communications technologies, especially platforms that support a wide range of mobile and remote access, security management must be a primary focus.

 

Securent, which provides Entitlement Management solutions, has announced its support for Office Communications Server 2007, saying its EMS solution will ensure the security of business communications on Microsoft’s platform. In integrating with Microsoft, Securent is able to provide policy-based control and visibility in to OCS 2007-based communications, allowing security teams, compliance officials, admins, IT managers, and end users control over who and which devices are authorized to communicate on the platform.

 

“With the emergence of unified communications, organizations will capitalize on greater

management and operational advantages. Securent is supporting these environments by

providing the security framework that protects informational assets against corruption and loss,” said Ranjeet Vidwans, vice president of business development for Securent.

 

EMS (Entitlement Management Solution), while providing management and audit functions for OCS 2007, also allows for specific security policies to be implemented, apart from the normal operational management of OCS 2007.

 

For instance, organizations are able to allow only executives to participate in Web or audio conferences dealing with management benefit packages, or customer calls can be routed to the appropriate CSR, based on the customer’s preferences (e.g., language preference, location, seniority, etc.). 

 

The security, compliance, and management features enabled by Securent become even more effective when they are integrated into other Microsoft technologies, like .NET (News - Alert) framework, SharePoint Server 2007, and Microsoft SQL Server.

 

For businesses that use all or some of these elements of Microsoft’s applications, Securent EMS provides security that is applied consistently across OCS 2007 and the rest of the IT infrastructure.

 

 “The combination of Microsoft’s unified communications software and Securent EMS provides a powerful new way for people to collaborate while taking the complexity out of communications,” said Yancey Smith, group marketing manager, Unified Communications Group, at Microsoft Corp. “Securent EMS complements the features in Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 powering communication across the applications, networks and devices businesses already know and use.”

 

Rigorous compliance and security standards require businesses to manage their user policies effectively and across the wide range of applications deployed in business communications systems today. Working in tandem with Microsoft, Securent provides the rich, policy-driven access controls to ensure security without impacting performance.