Virtual Security, Virtually Here

A quick Google search on the term “virtualization” returns nearly 19million results. The subject has graced the cover of nearly every majorIT trade publication in the past year in probably the past six months.In contrast, search the term “virtual security,” and you’ll be lucky tosee a meager 150,000 hits. Mark my words though—that limited attentionis about to change. As virtualization technology continues to emerge asa viable option for moving from development to production environments,the focus on the security implications of this new IT frontier willreach a tipping point.

With the security threat landscape in an enterprise changing on adaily basis, IT requires more innovative ways to protect desktopendpoints. Evolutionary security enhancements have just managed to keeppace with threats, but it is clear that more revolutionary securitymodels will be needed to protect the desktop in the future.Virtualization may hold the key.

Virtualization changes how IT thinks about resources. Withvirtualization, IT is no longer limited to running only one OS on asingle, underutilized server or workstation. Now IT can consolidatemultiple platforms running different OSes and heterogeneousapplications onto one powerful, reliable platform.

This new era of virtualization also means that IT will have a levelof security control beyond what was widely available previously. Intoday's threat landscape, virus scanning alone in the user OS isinsufficient protection for desktop endpoints. In fact, many threats,collectively called “modular malicious code,” disable virus-scanningand other security applications as the first step in an attack.

Imagine the potential of being able to take a dedicated securitydevice and embed it into the PC itself. Virtualization is making this areality. We’re currently working with Intel to discover new ways ofusing virtualization technology to enhance security on PCs. More tocome on that soon.

Today, virtualization can allow for isolated execution environments inPCs that enable IT professionals to manage security threats outside theend-user’s main OS environment. Embedded within new virtualizationtechnologies in this isolated environment, security solutions likefirewalls, intrusion prevention and antivirus will be much moreresistant to tampering and will be "always on" to monitor and protectthe desktop.

Isolated from the user OS, the virtual security approach can monitorthe boot-up and shut-down sequences of the user OS to help preventinterference from threats that target those processes when othersecurity programs are not running. In addition, because of thisisolation, IT is provided with a hardened, tamper-resistant executionenvironment where security services can focus on and address attacksfrom threats that seek to bring down the protection on the PC.

As always, with opportunity comes risk. Sure, virtualization couldbe game-changing for the traditional desktop security model, but it’snot without complexity. Virtual environments introduce a new attackvector, and one we anticipate being targeted in the future tocompromise host systems.

That said, the virtualization movement is still young—much like thatof other platforms such as mobile and VoIP—and its promise has broughta renewed vigor to the security industry. Can you hear the buzz? Maybeyou should do a Google search. Or better yet, watch the covers of theupcoming issues of your favorite trade publications.