Thursday, 11 November 2004 11:31 EST

Powerful, Flexible 3Com® Wireless Systems Boost Productivity, Deliver Government-Grade Data Security

MARLBOROUGH, Mass., November 10, 2004 — Enterprises seeking wireless connectivity without risking network security are turning to next-generation solutions from 3Com Corporation (Nasdaq: COMS) that include Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), known generally as the most secure encryption technology for wireless networks. The encryption standard that is recommended for use by the U.S. government, AES is also an integral part of the 802.11i wireless standard, ratified on June 29, 2004.

"Most of our competitors waited for the ratification of 802.11i to develop wireless products including AES, but 3Com has been offering AES-ready solutions for more than a year," said Drew Terry, enterprise wireless product line manager, 3Com. "The most hacker-wary IT department can deploy our wireless systems right now to extend network access conveniently and cost-effectively without compromising data security."

The result of a three-year international development effort, AES supersedes aging, more vulnerable WEP and WPA wireless encryption protocols that encode data for secure broadcasting across a wireless LAN. Built on a robust, efficient algorithm that generates 128-bit, 192-bit, and 256-bit keys, AES requires both the access point and the wireless client to use the same key to decrypt the transmission.

The U.S. government now requires wireless transmission to be encrypted with a FIPS 140-2 compliant encryption scheme in order to protect wireless transactions involving sensitive information, such as military or court records, and even classified and top secret data. As a result, federal, state, and local agencies are moving quickly to deploy AES-enabled wireless systems — providing a powerful example for other businesses for which privacy and data security are of utmost importance. AES is an example of compliance with the government requirement.

"While planning a courthouse LAN for our judges and attorneys last year, we knew wireless technology would be the most convenient, flexible solution, but we had to adhere to federal requirements protecting the privacy of criminal histories and other legal data," said Freddie Manint, criminal justice IS director of the 19th Judicial District Court of Louisiana. "Of the vendors that we investigated, 3Com offered the most compelling wireless systems that enabled us to meet these requirements. 3Com's early and ongoing support of AES is a clear sign of its commitment to data security as a fundamental aspect of wireless networking."

Security and Simplicity
Today, three new-generation 3Com wireless access points feature built-in AES. The Wireless LAN Access Point 7250 broadcasts at speeds of up to 54 Mbps using the 2.4 Gigahertz (GHz) 802.11g wireless standard. The Access Point 8250 operates at 802.11g and can be upgraded to add 5 GHz 802.11a connectivity to support more wireless clients. The Access Point 8750, 3Com's top-end wireless solution, delivers dual-mode 802.11a/802.11g connections out of the box. All are backwards-compatible with older 802.11b devices, ensuring advanced encryption availability across the wireless LAN to all clients equipped with AES-ready network interface cards (NICs).

To ensure quality performance at a low total cost of ownership, 3Com also offers four NICs that support AES: the 3Com 11a/b/g Wireless PC Card with XJACK® Antenna for laptop computers, the 3Com OfficeConnect 11g Wireless PC Card with XJACK® Antenna for laptop computers, the Wireless 11a/b/g PCI Adapter for desktop machines and the OfficeConnect Compact 11g USB adapter. While other vendors' wireless cards require a separate software product costing $20 to $50 per card for AES-compatible certificate authentication, 3Com includes it through open standards-based architecture — allowing plug-and-play security at no additional cost.

One customer reaping the benefits of this approach to wireless security is the state of Delaware. The state is midway through a process of migrating all of its wireless networks from 802.11b systems with proprietary security solutions to faster LANs with standards-based security. To achieve this, Delaware is using the 3Com Access Point 8750, with its built-in support for AES, for fast, flexible, highly secure network access across multiple departments. These include the Delaware State Police headquarters and nine barracks around the state, the Department of Transportation headquarters, the Division of Finance headquarters, and the Department of Technology and Information's four-building campus. From updating software on laptops mounted in patrol cars to facilitating training for state financial officers, 3Com wireless LANs with AES deliver versatile, convenient wireless connectivity with the highest level of security now on the market.

"Our state police need to follow strict standards for data security and privacy as they interface with the national criminal justice system," explained Jamie Stant, telecommunications technologist, Department of Technology and Information, State of Delaware. "Once we saw the level of performance and support 3Com provides, it was natural to adopt their secure wireless LAN products for other uses as well."

About 3Com
3Com is a leading provider of converged voice and data networking solutions for enterprises of all sizes. 3Com offers a broad line of innovative products backed by world class sales, service and support, which excel at delivering business value for its customers. When customers exercise choice, their choice is 3Com. For further information, please visit www.3com.com, or the press site www.3com.com/pressbox.