Press Releases
U.S. Defense Department Certifies Juniper Networks SSL VPN Appliances for Public Key Infrastructure Interoperability
Increases Security by Eliminating Passwords via Common Access Card/PKI Solution
SUNNYVALE, Calif., May 27, 2010 — Juniper Networks, Inc. (NYSE: JNPR) today announced that its SA Series SSL VPN (Secured Sockets Layer Virtual Private Network) appliances have been tested and certified by the U.S. Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) Joint Interoperability Test Command (JITC) for interoperability with Defense Department Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) requirements. With these new certifications of SA4000 FIPS, SA4500 FIPS, SA6000 FIPS, and SA6500 FIPS SSL VPN Appliances, Juniper now offers its defense clients and partners a highly secure, Common Access Card-enabled solution for PKI networks serving growing numbers of government personnel.
JITC interoperability testing and certification are required by the U.S. Department of Defense for all IT equipment that attaches to U.S. defense networks.
Resembling an identity card, a Common Access Card (CAC) contains a computer chip, barcodes, and a magnetic stripe that enables access to buildings, controlled spaces, and computer networks, and allows users to digitally ‘sign' and encrypt emails. PKI is a public key cryptography system used by the U.S. Department of Defense to enable users of an unsecured public network (e.g., the Internet) to securely and privately exchange data, providing confidentiality and identity assurance for senders and recipients. PKI certificates are embedded into CACs to provide password-free access to secure networks. (The use of Personal Identity Verification [PIV] cards throughout the U.S. government was mandated by Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 in 2004.)
"Removing passwords—and their transmission across the Internet, as well as the organizational or cloud-based files where they are stored and managed—eliminates a huge vulnerability for managers of critical, sensitive networks," said Bob Fortna, vice president, Defense, Juniper Networks. "The use of a certified SSL VPN solution in a CAC-enabled PKI environment promotes highly secure network access, continuity of operations during emergencies, and offers significant reductions in inappropriate network use and intrusions."
Juniper Networks SA Series SSL VPN Appliances provide highly secure network access in tandem with comprehensive defenses against remote users and devices that can potentially harm the corporate network. The wide range of newly-certified models offers an SSL VPN security platform to serve the remote network access needs of agencies of any size, providing best-in-class endpoint security, granular access control, and threat prevention on a high-availability, scalable platform.
Juniper's SA Series solutions are among the most widely certified SSL VPN solutions in the world. In addition to these new JITC certifications, Juniper SSL VPN appliances are also certified in compliance with the requirements of Common Criteria EAL3+ and those of a variety of testing and certification labs. The SA6500 has been independently validated by Neohapsis Labs as one of the industry's most scalable SSL VPN appliances, able to sustain more than 10,000 concurrent user tunnels.
About Juniper Networks
From devices to data centers, from consumers to the cloud, Juniper Networks delivers innovative software, silicon and systems that transform the experience and economics of networking. The company serves more than 30,000 customers and partners worldwide, and generated more than $3 billion in revenue over the last year. Additional information can be found at www.juniper.net.
Juniper Networks and Junos are registered trademarks of Juniper Networks, Inc. in the United States and other countries. The Juniper Networks and Junos logos are trademarks of Juniper Networks, Inc. All other trademarks, service marks, registered trademarks, or registered service marks are the property of their respective owners.
