How much money do you have in your budget? You have to be aware that this is very expensive software."

Ah, the not-so-sweet sound of the sales pitch.

Much of my work as a security manager is like that of a juggler, always keeping balls in the air. My daily goal is to deal with the next falling ball, be it a virus attack, a new e-commerce project or some suspected abuse.

This week, however, I was able to lift my gaze for a few days to think about future needs and meet with vendors. And once again, a slick product demonstration showed all too clearly one vendor's fundamental inability to understand our needs.

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