What’s New in modus 5.0

New Features and Enhancements

With modus 5.0, Vircom adds a number of new features and improvements: Microsoft Exchange 2010 support and integration (Contacts and Trusted Senders), Quarantine Report delegation and an enhanced Sender Reputation System.  This new release also marks the debut for Vircom’s Policy Management add-on. Policy Management protects your organisation against intentional or unintentional data leakage by email. It also provides traceability and tools to enforce your company policies.

Email Policy Management

This complete inbound and outbound solution enables organizations to control what content can and cannot leave or enter their local network through email, and how it should be processed.

• Policy Management scans both inbound and outbound directions
• Rules examine subject, body and attachments of emails
• Rules use standard dictionaries which can be commercially-available lists of terms specific to an industry (tax and accounting terms, ICD medical codes and terms) or custom created to fit organisations’ precise requirements (project codes, corporate credit card numbers, customer lists)
• Policies apply to specific users, groups (locally created or imported from Active Directory) or domains

To learn more, please read about Vircom’s Email Policy Management module.

Enhanced Sender Reputation System (SRS)

The spam landscape has evolved over the past few years.  Most modern spam originates from a few botnet masters, who operate on advanced network infrastructures using techniques such as Fast Flux to bypass DNSBL systems and render them ineffective.

With modus 5.0, Vircom is introducing an enhanced Sender Reputation System. Vircom determines IP reputation based on real-time activity. SRS servers are updated every 5 minutes, providing an instant reaction to new spam waves, infected computers, and cleaned hosts which have become botnet-free. These lightning fast reaction times mean SRS is the ideal counter-measure for modern botnets.  SRS operates at the connection level and requires very few computing resources. Emails originating from bad reputation sources can be automatically rejected or quarantined.

Microsoft Exchange Integration

Microsoft Exchange 2010 is now officially supported within modus 5.0. All versions of Exchange 2000 or later will integrate with Vircom’s email security solutions.

• Automatically white-list Address Book Contacts (requires modusGate, Exchange 2007/2010 and Exchange Web Service)
• Automatically white-list Safe Senders (requires modusGate, Exchange 2010 and PowerShell)

modusGate will import these lists from Exchange and white-list them at the scan engine level, making the feature totally transparent to end users.

Trusted Senders Spoofing Prevention

Many spammers are still using one of the oldest tricks available to bypass spam filters: the trusted senders spoofing method.  After entering envelope data properly, the spammer can fake a sender identity using the body of the message. The system will prevent users from white-listing their own email address in order to prevent this scenario.

Quarantine Report Delegation

With modus 5.0, end users can delegate their quarantine report to another person.  For example, an organization’s president may want an administrative assistant to review his quarantine report for him.  The assistant will only have access to the actions from within the quarantine report and the president does not have to share his credentials.  Flexibility can thus be achieved while keeping security and privacy at a maximum.

Hardware Requirements

Software Requirements

• Operating System: Windows Server 2003 or 2008 (32-bit)
• Web Server: IIS version 6.0 or later
• Components: .NET Framework 3.5 SP1 and MDAC 2.8 SP1 or higher
• Exchange Integration: Microsoft Exchange 2000/2003/2007/2010
• Database Server: SQL Server 2000+ or SQL Server 2005 Express Edition
• Web Browser: Internet Explorer 7+, Chrome or FireFox

Available in several solutions

• modusGate™: Email security gateway software
• modusGate™ VM: Hardened virtual appliance for VMware® hypervisors
• modusGate™ Appliance: Hardware appliance in 1U or 2U format
• modusMail™: Integrated spam filtering mail server software