eSoft Adds Under $1K Firewall/UTM Line

BROOMFIELD, Colo. -- eSoft, Inc., a leading vendor of integrated Internet security and content management solutions, announced today that it has launched the InstaGate 404e Internet Security Gateway, a sub-$1,000 Firewall/UTM appliance designed to protect small organizations and networks from modern application-based threats.

Designed for networks of up to 25 users, the InstaGate 404e offers an organization full protection from Internet malware, in addition to providing anti-spam, email filtering, web site filtering, IM and peer-to-peer (P2P) application control and secure IPSec VPN connectivity to remote sites and mobile workers. Unlike most Firewall/UTM appliances on the market, the InstaGate 404e is designed to protect organizations from the latest threats brought on by Web 2.0, AJAX and other advanced application-layer technologies. This is enabled through eSoft's proprietary Bi-modal scanning technology, which features both proxy- and packet-based scanning, allowing features and capabilities that traditional UTM appliances do not have.

According to Scott Lukes, eSoft's Vice President of Marketing and Product Management, "Traditional Firewall/UTM devices tend to be packet-based, which means they do not have the capability to incorporate mail transfer agents, or MTAs, into their devices, nor can they fully proxy for mail protocols like SMTP/POP3 or web protocols such as HTTP/HTTPS. As a result, these devices are not able to offer full services such as anti-spam or web content filtering. Instead, they tend to 'front-end' for external cloud-based services, which can add latency and open up additional security holes in the network."

eSoft Inc.