Network Utilities Announces Universal 802. lx Client For Enterprise WLAN and Hotspot Access in UK

Strong Security Protects User Credentials and Data; Can be Private-Labeled by Hotspot Providers and WISPs Who Need to Offer Secure, 802.1 x-based Access

Network Utilities today announced the commercial release in UK of Odyssey Client, a universal-access Client, based on the IEEE security standard 802.lx, that lets enterprise and hotspot users securely and anonymously connect over a wireless link to a network.

Odyssey Client is available as a stand-alone, or can be private-labeled or integrated into an existing connection manager by hotspot providers and Wireless Internet Service Providers (WISPs) who wish to provide a universal 802.lx client for their enterprise customers.

The product has been developed by Funk Software of Cambridge, Massachusetts - for whom Network Utilities is the Master Distributor in the UK.

Michele Lewington, Managing Director of Network Utilities said: "For many organisations, the 802.lx protocol has emerged already as the WLAN security standard for the enterprise and now they are demanding the same strong level of security for their workers when those same people connect from airports, coffee shops, and other wireless hotspot locations. By implementing Odyssey Client, Hotspot providers and WISPs can meet the security requirements of these enterprise customers and add new 802.lx services to their offerings."

Odyssey Client supports multiple strong WLAN security methods, protecting users against wireless snooping and cryptographic attack on credentials and data. It runs on Windows XP, 2000, 98, and Me.

A secure, easy-to-implement WLAN client for the enterprise, Odyssey Client also is ideally suited to hotspot providers and WISPs who need to enable secure and anonymous access over the public Internet for their enterprise customers. With Odyssey Client, these providers can:

o   Provide secure access from any hotspot, while permitting users to connect with their usual corporate credentials. Odyssey Client's innovative security protocol EAP-TTLS fully protects user credentials over the link, and prevents known wireless security hazards such as dictionary attack on password.

o   Provide a universal 802.lx client to their enterprise customers, for a single user experience in the enterprise and while roaming - A universal client, for use both at the enterprise and hotspot, it provides a consistent user experience and significantly eases the WLAN access roll-out and support process.

o   Easily deploy Odyssey Client across all enterprise users - Odyssey Client's auto-install feature lets providers set connection settings, and then automatically push them to their enterprise customers, for rapid deployment and minimal support impact.

o   Provide users' identity privacy and locational privacy Odyssey Client fully protects users' identities between the client node and the trusted provider, to protect their locational privacy against surveillance, undesired acquisition of marketing information and other intrusions from monitoring and eavesdropping.

o   Protect confidential customer lists Because Odyssey Client protects credentials and identity, providers can comfortably provide access via a number of smaller hotspot operators without concern for the privacy of their customer lists.

o   Easily customize with corporate identity, to create branded presence on
customers' desktop.

o   Integrate 802.lx functionality into an existing client, to provide 802.lx
capability within a client which already performs other functions, such as dial or VPN access.

"We don't believe 802.lx will supplant browser-based user authentication at the hotspot," said Joe Ryan, Vice President of Funk Software. "Instead, the two authentication methods will likely coexist, allowing providers to accommodate casual, on-demand users with no security requirements, while adding new 802.lx services to satisfy their enterprise customers' requirements for secure, anonymous access to the corporate network over the public Internet."

Odyssey Client is compatible with a wide variety of 802.lx wireless adapter cards, including those from Agere, Avaya, Cisco, Enterasys, Intermec, and others. It runs on Windows XP, 2000, 98, and Me. For full security, Odyssey Client requires an EAP-TTLS- or EAP-TLS compatible RADIUS server, such as Odyssey Server from Network Utilities.

Pricing and Availability
Odyssey Client vl.0 is available in UK immediately from Network Utilities and costs just 37.50 per license. Quantity discounts and private-label licensing are available.

About Network Utilities
Network Utilities is a privately owned company, which was formed in 1989 as a Software House to primarily focus on the development of network communications tools. This subsequently provided a sound basis for strategic alliances with developers of similar products requiring a UK presence and resulted in Network Utilities forging partnership arrangements with several international software manufacturers. Since 1992 Network Utilities has been committed to providing and supporting a 'best of breed' range of products for the management and security of the enterprise network. Its extended portfolio now also addresses Internet security and solutions for the service provider. Network Utilities (Systems) Ltd is headquartered at Liberty House, 158a Ewell Road, Surbiton, Surrey KT6 6HE, UK, Tel: +44 (0)20 8390 9911. For more information about the company, please visit the Network Utilities web site at http://www.netutils.com

About Funk Software
Based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Funk Software develops Odyssey an end-to-end 802.1 x WLAN security solution that can be easily and widely deployed on enterprise networks. It is also the leading provider of commercial AAA solutions for wireless operator, service provider, and enterprise networks. In use on thousands of public and private networks worldwide, the Steel-Belted Radius family of products delivers a AAA solution on the scale required by the largest carriers and service providers. And scales easily to meet the centralized authentication needs of the enterprise. The Steel-Belted Radius family of RADIUS/AAA solutions includes Steel-Belted Radius/Service Provider Edition, Steel-Belted Radius Concurrency Server, Steel-Belted Radius Port Allocation System, Steel-Belted Radius Mobile lB Module, and Steel-Belted Radius/Enterprise Edition.

Ends.    

For further information please contact:
Paul Calderwood
Kingswood Public Relations
Tel: 020 8763 2241
Email:kingswoodmktg@btinternet.com

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