Residents of Israel, a country surrounded by potential enemies, learn to take security seriously. It is not surprising that Check Point software emerged from this environment, when it delivered what became known as firewall software 10 years ago.

The founder and CEO of Check Point Software, Gil Shwed, still works at Check Point's head office in Tel Aviv.

He has a fairly relaxed manner, as do most of the staff. There are no suits and ties; the company uniform is jeans or shorts and T-shirts. Despite the casual appearance, the 1200 staff (of whom half are based in Israel) work hard and enjoy being part of the company.

Shwed spent his late teens in the army, along with his friend and co-founder Shlomo Kramer, where as a computer programmer he was responsible for what he says now is "a little bit of security".

While working together on a project after leaving the army, Shlomo introduced Shwed to Check Point's third co-founder, Marius Nacht, who is still with the company as vice-chairman and senior vice-president.

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