Analog Devices

Integrated Circuit Maker Protects Thousands of PCs with Easy Security Solution

Analog Devices makes more than 10,000 different integrated circuits that are used in electronic products. Security is critical to protecting its computing resources, including PCs, servers, and the network. Analog Devices had antivirus software to protect its PCs, but wanted to increase its level of protection and its ability to respond quickly to virus outbreaks. For that reason, Analog Devices deployed Microsoft® Forefront™ Client Security. The company has already benefited from faster identification and cleansing of viruses that could have affected its IT infrastructure. Forefront Client Security also provides easy-to-use administrative tools that help the company’s IT department be more efficient in the deployment of antivirus and antispyware updates and policies. And it provides reporting functions that help IT staff clearly understand the state of the company’s PC security.

Situation

Using Forefront Client Security and working with Microsoft provides an easy, effective security solution that puts us on the leading edge of virus responsiveness.  Kevin Hayden Manager, Desktop Engineering Group Analog Devices

Analog Devices is a leading maker of integrated circuits (ICs) that are used in electronic equipment. The company designs, manufactures, and markets more than 10,000 high-performance analog, mixed-signal, and digital signal processing (DSP) ICs used in products such as cell phones, LCD televisions, and digital cameras. The Norwood, Massachusetts–based company, which employs about 9,000 people and has more than 60,000 manufacturing customers, reported revenue of U.S.$2.57 billion for the 2006 fiscal year.

The technical nature of Analog Devices’ business means that the company relies heavily on a safe, secure IT infrastructure. Its workforce includes engineers and other technical employees, many of whom spend most of their working day using their desktop or portable computers.

Susan Blandy, Manager of Desktop Computing Services for Analog Devices, says protecting against viruses and spyware has always been a challenge because the company’s employees need a lot of freedom and flexibility in how and where they use their computers. The company has about 6,000 desktop and portable computers running the Windows® XP operating system.

“We cannot lock down the PCs used by our employees,” Blandy says. “PCs are critical resources for them, and employees are constantly installing applications and downloading tools and other content from the Internet that they need to do their jobs. Plus, more than half of our PCs are laptops. There is a lot of mobile and home use, which means a lot of opportunities for people to connect to potentially troublesome sources.”

Analog Devices was using a well-known antivirus solution for its PC security. “During virus outbreaks, we need to quickly generate reports that are easy to read and provide the information we need to take action quickly and effectively,” says Kevin Hayden, Manager of the Desktop Engineering Group at Analog Devices. “Our antivirus solution lacked some of the reporting tools that we needed.”

Solution

The company decided to take part in the Microsoft® Technology Adoption Program (TAP) for Microsoft Forefront™ Client Security (FCS), which helps guard PCs and servers against threats such as viruses, worms, Trojan horses, spyware, and rootkits. Blandy says that because of the software’s integration with Microsoft infrastructure, Analog Devices determined that using it would be beneficial. The company evaluated Forefront Client Security extensively during 2006 and early 2007, working with a TAP team. They used a prerelease version of the software to evaluate and design a deployment that would best fit the Analog Devices IT environment. The company is rolling out Forefront Client Security on 3,000 desktop computers in phases and is scheduled to be completed by April 2007. 

The company uses Microsoft Systems Management Server 2003 to deploy Forefront Client Security, Active Directory Group Policy to configure the Forefront Client Security software, Windows Server Update Services to deploy signature updates, and Microsoft Operations Manager 2005 to establish alerts about security issues.

Benefits

By deploying Forefront Client Security, Analog Devices has been able to enhance the security of its PCs. The solution helps the company react faster to virus attacks, which means less damage to PCs and the company’s network. Administration of PC security is more efficient, with easy-to-understand reports and concise analysis of virus events. Forefront Client Security also delivers a better overall value because it provides unified antivirus and antispyware protection while integrating tightly with system software such as Active Directory, Systems Management Server, and Operations Manager. 

Faster Response to Virus Attacks

Forefront Client Security has already proved its value in the brief period of the initial deployment. “Soon after our first installations, we were hit by a brand new, very ugly virus,” Hayden says. “We engaged with the Forefront support services team to help us. Microsoft gave us tools to quickly identify the problem, gave us a detailed analysis of what the malware was doing, detailed workarounds for our non-FCS machines, and rapidly updated virus definitions to include the new malware detection and removal. 

“Due to the integration with Windows Server Update Services, the Forefront Client Security signature updates were deployed automatically and quickly. And the reporting tool provided within seconds the information that the technician handling the event needed,” he says. “Using Forefront Client Security and working with Microsoft provides an easy, effective security solution that puts us on the leading edge of virus responsiveness.”

More Detailed Information on Viruses

Forefront Client Security is easy to deploy across an organization, and to update with the necessary signature files.  Kevin Hayden Manager, Desktop Engineering Group Analog Devices

Forefront Client Security provides greater efficiency and ease of administration for IT specialists in a number of ways, including policy deployment and configuration, the analysis of viruses and threats, and the reporting tools available to IT staff.

“Forefront Client Security is easy to deploy across an organization, and to update with the necessary signature files,” says Hayden. “And from a management perspective, one of the great features of the software is that it views a malware incident as a system getting a virus as opposed to the previous antivirus solution, where an incident is a file getting a virus.

“The real issue is that a piece of malware may touch or infect several files on a system,” he adds. “When I look at a malware report, I do not want to see a list of every file infected on each machine with the virus. That could be several pages for each machine. I want to see a list of machines with the malware. Forefront Client Security gives us that type of report but still gives us the ability to drill down to see the details if needed.”

Hayden says that during a virus event, Forefront Client Security provides critical information in seconds, and the data is concise and easy to understand. “Our previous solution would take minutes to return the report and then we would need to parse out the critical data, taking more valuable time,” he says.

Forefront Client Security also provides clear, comprehensive reports that can be understood at a glance. “Kevin has set it up so I get a one-page report in e-mail every morning,” says Blandy. “We use the Forefront Client Security preformatted reports, which contain graphics that are easy to understand and to drill into if I want more information. They are far more comprehensive than the reports from our previous solution. I can quickly see our deployment status, malware and vulnerability issues, and a short list of the top alerts. If I want, I can drill down to the individual computers affected.”

Better Value for the Company

Forefront Client Security also provides greater overall value for Analog Devices. Its antispyware and antivirus tools are part of an integrated product, and it offers additional features like vulnerability assessment, which let IT staff members determine which PCs are at risk. “With Forefront Client Security, we have protection from spyware and security state assessment built into the product,” Hayden says. “It offers us unified protection in a complete product.”

Hayden says the level of support provided by the Microsoft Forefront support team is also beneficial. “I’m very impressed with the support that we get,” he says. “Whether we call or send an e-mail message, we get an immediate response—and there is always follow-through to make sure the issue is resolved. We feel that the product and the support are a cohesive, compelling security offering.”

For More Information

For more information about Microsoft products and services, call the Microsoft Sales Information Center at (800) 426-9400. In Canada, call the Microsoft Canada Information Centre at (877) 568-2495. Customers who are deaf or hard-of-hearing can reach Microsoft text telephone (TTY/TDD) services at (800) 892-5234 in the United States or (905) 568-9641 in Canada. Outside the 50 United States and Canada, please contact your local Microsoft subsidiary. To access information using the World Wide Web, go to:
www.microsoft.com

For more information about Analog Devices products and services, visit the Web site at:
www.analog.com

Microsoft Forefront Product Portfolio

The Microsoft® Forefront™ comprehensive line of business security products provides greater protection and control through integration with your existing IT infrastructure and through simplified deployment, management, and analysis. Forefront is a comprehensive solution that helps provide protection for the client operating system, application servers, and the network edge.

For more information about the Forefront product portfolio, go to:
www.microsoft.com/forefront 

This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY. 

Document published March 2007