More Than 73% Of Network Devices Contain At Least One Known Vulnerability

PRESS RELEASE

NEW YORK – May 23, 2011 – Dimension Data, a $4.7 billion global IT services and solutions provider, today announced the results of its Network Barometer Report 2011, which includes findings from 270 Technology Lifecycle Management (TLM) assessments at enterprise organizations worldwide throughout 2010. The annual Dimension Data report gauges the readiness of organizations’ networks to support business by evaluating adherence to best practices, potential security vulnerabilities and the end-of-life status of network devices. Significant findings from the 2011 report reveal that companies are:

Falling behind new security threats:

More than 73% of corporate network devices had at least one known security vulnerability, nearly double the 38% recorded in last year’s report.

A single, higher-risk vulnerability identified by Cisco’s PSIRT* (Product Security Incident Response Team) in September 2009 – PSIRT 109444 – was found in a staggering 66% of all devices, and was responsible for this jump.

Taking risks by pushing technology assets to their limits:

The percentage of network devices that have passed the “last-day-of-support” dropped dramatically from 31% last year to just 9% this year.

However, 47% of devices were in late stage obsolescence – characterized as “beyond end-of-contract renewal” – which is the highest risk phase of the product lifecycle. At this point, organizations can no longer purchase additional support and are less likely to have access to the latest vendor-supplied security patches, leaving them vulnerable to security breaches and compliance violations.

“The Network Barometer Report 2011 raises the question of whether organizations have the necessary visibility into their overall technology environment to adequately protect customer data, privacy and sensitive business information, and to intelligently manage and ‘sweat’ IT assets,” said Wesley Johnston, chief operating officer, Dimension Data Americas.

“Previous research that we’ve conducted – unrelated to the Network Barometer Report – supports this concern, revealing that companies are unaware of as much as 25% of their networking devices. Organizations need a full view of every device on the network – including where it is, what it does and what the implications are when it breaks or becomes unsupportable – in order to protect themselves and their customers and ensure business productivity and efficiency,” stated Johnston.

Other key findings in the 2011 report include:

The average number of configuration violations per device has decreased by 30%; however, AAA (authentication, authorization and accounting) errors continue to dominate.

With PSIRT 109444 removed from the equation, the next four vulnerabilities were found in less than 20% of all devices, indicating that organizations are stepping up remediation efforts.

To download the full Network Barometer Report 2011, please visit: www.dimensiondata.com/networkbarometer.

About Dimension Data

Founded in 1983, Dimension Data plc is an ICT services and solutions provider that uses its technology expertise, global service delivery capability and entrepreneurial spirit to accelerate the business ambitions of its clients. Dimension Data is a member of the NTT Group. www.dimensiondata.com