Microsoft in the Information Security Market

Microsoft is emptying its pockets with tiny acquisitions of security solution providers with the idea to target the masses in its all-in-one security service OneCare. There's nothing wrong with offering up to three licenses for $49.95 per year, at least not from a marketing point of view. Microsoft's Security Ambitions are getting huge "as it continues to reveal its security ambitions in very obvious ways. Its $75 million acquisition of SSL VPN vendor Whale Communications last week shows just how deep it wants to go against the established leaders of various security technologies. Already in Microsoft’s security sights are the antivirus and antispyware vendors. Since buying European antispyware vendor Giant Company Software and antivirus vendor Sybari, it was pretty clear that Microsoft intended to get into the malware protection market. Symantec, McAfee and Trend Micro seemed to be the clearest targets, but so are Sophos, CA, F-Secure and scores more smaller vendors."

Competition is always good for all parties involved. In another article on the topic, WebRoot's founder, a leading anti-spyware solutions provider, gave great comments about Microsoft's take over of the infosec market : "The taking of a second-best product in this space is akin to locking half the doors in your house," he said. "Vista will not solve the spyware problem. It may change the vector of attack, but it will not solve this problem. And I'll bet the company on it."

Microsoft really surprised me with their release of the Strider Honey Monkeys Crawler, as precisely the type of in-house research that would act as a main differention point of its solutions. The problem has never been the technology, they still have some of the brightest minds in the world working for them, but providing value and communicating the idea to the final customer. Security as a second priority isn't tolerated by customers, and Microsoft is last company that the end user associates with security. Obsessed with perfection, and still living in the product marketing concept world, is outdated thinking, the way pushing features based on "what the sample says" is not going to hold the front any longer. Customers beg to participate!

While for the time being Microsoft is rediscovering the Web, and working on Vista, money doesn't necessarily buy innovation, prone to make impact individuals do --ones heading to Mountain View, California where the real action is.