NSS LABS Unveils Product Certification Program to Support Payment Card Data Security

Provides Further Clarity for Merchants, Banks and Assessors


CHICAGO, IL--(Marketwire - December 11, 2007) - NSS Labs (NSS), a world leader in independent security product testing and certification, today announced its new product security certification program to support Payment Card Industry (PCI) security standards.

NSS Labs' new certification program supports data security by specifying both essential and recommended requirements for products. NSS-certified products are rated for appropriate usage based on meeting PCI DSS requirements, as well as specific functional, security and performance requirements of payment card networks.

The NSS Labs' Security Certification for PCI-related products provides the following benefits:

--  Merchants who purchase and install security products certified by NSS
    Labs can be confident, knowing that these products have been tested and
    validated by an independent third party for usage in payment networks.
--  Assessors have more technical insight into a product's capabilities.
--  Banks and card brands can have confidence that their merchant
    population is installing products that are effective and appropriate, and
    therefore supporting the compliance process.
    

"We're proud to support PCI data security by creating and implementing an empirical-based certification process for PCI-related products," said Vik Phatak, chairman and CEO of NSS Labs. "Our team holds extensive experience and resources to help banks, merchants and card issuers maintain the highest level of system integrity within their networks."

NSS Labs is launching certifications in six product categories immediately. These include firewalls, unified threat management (UTM), web application firewalls, host and network intrusion prevention and wireless security. The requirements for each category are developed based on NSS Labs expertise and experience as well as with the input from an extensive customer advisory panel.

"Our research indicates that organizations within the payment card industry often underestimate the time and resources required to achieve compliance with the PCI DSS," said Derek Brink, vice president and research director of IT Security for Aberdeen Group. "NSS Labs and its independent PCI product testing and certification program aims to address this issue, by helping merchants and vendors more quickly identify solutions that meet their specific requirements for functionality, security and performance."

About NSS Labs

Founded in 1991, Chicago-based NSS Labs is the globally recognized leader in independent security performance testing and certification. NSS clients include CA, Cisco, IBM, Fortinet, Juniper Networks, McAfee, Radware, RSA, SonicWall, SourceFire, Symantec, Third Brigade, TippingPoint and others. NSS Labs performs the most comprehensive, complex, high-performance security testing in the industry. NSS Labs is solely responsible for its certification programs, including the criteria, methodology and processes. For more information, visit: http://www.nsslabs.com.

© 2007 by NSS Labs, Inc. All rights reserved.

Contact Information: Contact: David Oates david@stalwartcom.com 858.750.5560