Sourcefire integrates with Qualys

Sourcefire announced an integration with QualysGuard. To support increased product collaboration, Sourcefire is delivering a new Qualys Connector, which associates threats detected by the Sourcefire IPSTM (Intrusion Prevention System) with host vulnerabilities found by QualysGuard Vulnerability Management.

“As organizations deal with the constant stream of attacks and alerts, they are continually looking for ways to prioritize the critical threats that require immediate attention,” said Martin Roesch, CTO and founder of Sourcefire. “The combination of Sourcefire and QualysGuard enables organizations to further reduce the number of actionable threats by correlating real-time network intelligence with active vulnerability scanning data. The Sourcefire IPS leverages this insight to adapt and customize its protection to a user’s network.”

The Qualys Connector leverages the Sourcefire Defense Center to automatically correlate threats detected by the Sourcefire IPS with host vulnerabilities detected by QualysGuard. The combined solutions deliver increased contextual data – helping security analysts prioritize intrusion alerts.

The Sourcefire IPS can quickly determine if a host is actually vulnerable to a given exploit and adapt its protection accordingly, saving valuable analysis time. The increased visibility into system vulnerabilities allows the Sourcefire IPS to reduce the number of intrusion events at the sensor level to intelligently self tune its protection and increases the precision of its alerting and blocking.

“With the increased sophistication and frequency of attacks, customers need more effective solutions to respond quickly and protect the network from these threats,” said Wolfgang Kandek, CTO at Qualys. “Sourcefire has built its reputation on delivering intelligent and adaptive security solutions, and the new Qualys Connector further illustrates the importance of accurate vulnerability information, which helps increase the effectiveness of protection efforts.”