GFI Software Addresses Patch and Mobile Device Management in New Version of VIPRE® Antivirus Business

CLEARWATER, Fla., Nov. 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- GFI Software™ today launched the latest edition of VIPRE Business, which for the first time provides small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) with access to a single solution for antivirus, patch management and Mobile Device Management (MDM), all while maintaining its small footprint.

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The newest version of VIPRE Business Premium addresses several of the most pressing security challenges facing administrators today, most notably vulnerabilities in third-party software products, which according to the GFI Malware Response Team, account for up to 75 percent of malware and virus infections that compromise SMB networks.

"VIPRE Business Premium's patch management has allowed us to push out over 600 individual patches to nearly 200 machines in just a few days," says Chad Skinner, IT manager, Lehi City Corporation. "This exponentially increases the overall security of our computers and frees up IT personnel to perform other important tasks."

SMBs are also facing the challenge of managing disparate mobile devices running multiple operating systems, creating new issues and security concerns that didn't exist just a few years ago. Gartner, Inc. recently predicted that through 2017, 90 percent of enterprises will have two or more mobile operating systems to support, leading 65 percent of companies to adopt MDM to address security concerns related to the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) trend.¹ Malware writers have noticed and are actively crafting threats to exploit this new attack vector.

VIPRE Business addresses these challenges by enabling administrators to centrally manage antivirus protection for PCs, Macs and Android devices as well as mobile security for iPhones, iPads and Android smartphones and tablets. VIPRE Business Premium also includes integrated patch management, a firewall, a malicious website blocker and an anti-phishing filter. VIPRE's new patch management feature in the Premium version automatically finds and applies updates to out-of-date software. It also displays the status of Windows Updates on each computer, and can turn on Windows Updates to keep the operating system fully up to date.

"One of the most dreaded parts of my job is disturbing my users. If there's any way I can avoid costly interruptions, I become ecstatic," says Michael Ruf, IT manager, Interstate Cold Storage. "After testing the beta version, VIPRE Business Premium actually works the way automatic updates should. It gives us true background updating with no restarts, installation wizards, or pop-ups."

"Our customers pleaded with us to avoid becoming a bloatware producer, like so many other vendors in this space. We really took that to heart and added these new capabilities to VIPRE while at the same time actually speeding up the underlying engine," said Mark Patton, general manager of the Security Business Unit, GFI Software. "The feedback has been incredible, and by automating patch management and MDM in a central console, we're enabling IT administrators to not only maximize their own efficiency, but that of their users as well."  

New features found in VIPRE Business include:

Patch management – auto-updates out-of-date software by integrating patch management (available in Premium version)

• Mobile Device Management – maintains integrity of corporate data with remote wipe for smartphones and tablets. Android protection includes antivirus and remote alarm and locate features, and iPad and iPhone protection includes remote lock and password enforcement
• Mac desktop and laptop security – keeps Macs secure and includes a dedicated policy that lets admins configure and centrally manage antivirus on these devices from the VIPRE console
• Unprotected and infected network PC identification – finds unprotected machines and alerts administrator to take action
• Auto-removal of existing antivirus software – eliminates conflicts on the network during installation by automatically removing existing AV solutions
• Removable device scanning – auto-scans USB flash drives and other removable media when plugged or inserted into PCs to prevent infections

Don't underestimate the hidden cost of bloatware
Most antivirus solutions take up an enormous amount of CPU, leaving employees frustrated and unproductive. In fact, using statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor, GFI research shows that a resource-heavy antivirus solution can cost companies nearly $1,000 in productivity per year for each knowledge worker they employ. VIPRE is optimized to scan for threats quickly, protecting against all types of malware without draining resources or slowing down machines.

Pricing and Availability
VIPRE Antivirus Business and VIPRE Business Premium are now available. An annual subscription for 10 workstations is priced at just $148. The Premium version costs just $176. All subscriptions include threat definition updates, software upgrades, and free tech support by phone, email, chat and forums.

To learn more about VIPRE Antivirus Business please visit http://www.gfi.com/business-antivirus-software, click here to download a free 30-day, full-featured trial, or send an email to [email protected].

¹ Source: Gartner, Inc presentation at the Gartner Symposium/ITxpo held in Orlando, FL on October 25, 2012 (http://www.gartner.com/it/page.jsp?id=2213115)

About GFI
GFI Software provides web and mail security, archiving and fax, networking and security software and hosted IT solutions for small to medium-sized businesses (SMB) via an extensive global partner community. GFI products are available either as on-premise solutions, in the cloud or as a hybrid of both delivery models. With award-winning technology, a competitive pricing strategy, and a strong focus on the unique requirements of SMBs, GFI satisfies the IT needs of organizations on a global scale. The company has offices in the United States, UK, Austria, Australia, Malta, Hong Kong, Philippines and Romania, which together support hundreds of thousands of installations worldwide. GFI is a channel-focused company with thousands of partners throughout the world and is also a Microsoft Gold ISV Partner.

For more information

GFI Software
Please email David Kelleher at [email protected] 
GFI - Malta: Tel: +356 2205 2000; Fax: +356 21382419.
URL: http://www.gfi.com.

Davies Murphy Group
Please email Brian Alberti at [email protected]
GFI – US: Tel: +1-781-418-2403

Disclaimer
Copyright © 2012 GFI Software. All rights reserved. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. To the best of our knowledge, all details were correct at the time of publishing; this information is subject to change without notice

SOURCE GFI Software