Comments from Bruce Schneier and Ray Stanton
Our recent acquisition of Counterpane Internet Security is the latest BT initiative to expand our range of security services available to global enterprises. Counterpane is a household name in the security world, not least because of the reputation of its founder and CTO, Bruce Schneier, the internationally renowned security author, publicist and technology expert. BT Counterpane is set to play a valuable role in BT's portfolio of networked IT services and solutions.
Comments from Bruce Schneier and Ray Stanton, head of BT's global business continuity, security and governance practice. Interviewer: Mike Arnavutian, Security Marketing Manager for BT.
Bruce Schneier video
Bruce Schneier is one of the world's leading security experts, and now the CTO of BT Counterpane. In this refreshingly candid conversation, Bruce talks about trust, the new threat landscape, and the defences every CIO should be deploying today. Click here to watch the video.
Why did BT decide to acquire Counterpane?
Ray Stanton: "We realised how important threat monitoring services was becoming to our customers, and we had a choice between creating that capability ourselves, or partnering with someone such as Counterpane. We quickly realised that Counterpane, as visionary/leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Managed Security Services Providers (MSSP), was the ideal partner."
Bruce, you pioneered managed security services in the early days. How do you see this market developing over the next few years, and what are the main drivers?
Bruce Schneier: "Security is IT infrastructure, and infrastructure is always outsourced. When I started Counterpane in 1999, I said that there is no reason for any company to have their own security expertise. It's no different from fire fighting, or guarding your lobbies, or police protection; you outsource these things, and that makes sense. But it has been slow."
"The companies that BT deals with have realised that you outsource IT; they are outsourcing much larger chunks of their infrastructure to BT, and security is a part of that. A company shouldn't have to buy security separately; security should be a part of everything they buy. And that's how BT looks at security; it becomes embedded in everything. So when I look at the future of managed security services, I don't see security outsourcing – I see the future of outsourcing IT, which security is just a part of."
Can you summarise your message to Counterpane's existing customers, and to customers in the rest of BT?
Bruce Schneier: "Security will become both more important and less important. More important because it will become embedded in every IT networking and telecom project and service that you have. And less important because you won't have to think about it explicitly. It will just be there, and it will just work. Security should be part of infrastructure – that is BT's vision and that is my vision."
Ray Stanton: "When we approach our customers in security, it's about meeting all their needs in imaginative and innovative ways. It's about security being holistic in nature, and in the expectation of a service brought together and managed professionally and expertly by skilled and experienced people….We will use this opportunity to introduce new and innovative services that will excite our customers; Federated Identity Management is one of those, as an example, but there will also be others. Watch this space!"
Click here to read more about BT Counterpane and the new range of BT security services.
