14 DAY TRIAL // The Beta 2 build of Forefront Threat Management Gateway is now available for download. Offered as the next step in the evolution of the Internet Security and Acceleration Server (ISA Server), the solution is a secure Web gateway designed to act as a layer of defense between a company's IT infrastructure and the Internet. Essentially, Forefront Threat Management Gateway offers unified perimeter security bulletproofing networks against web-based attacks. In this regard, the solution comes to the table with capabilities permitting it to inspect both HTTP and HTTPS traffic in order to filter and block threats.
“As we all know, the Web is a great boon to employee productivity. People use the Web every day and all day in the course of their jobs. Web-based applications and social networking sites grow in popularity. But at the same time, the Web presents increasingly dangerous security threats. TMG helps organizations take full advantage of business benefits presented by the Web by keeping malware out and controlling employee Web usage,” explained Bill Jensen, senior product manager for Forefront Threat Management Gateway.
In addition to protecting users on a company's infrastructure from web threats while browsing, Forefront Threat Management Gateway also offers firewall functionality, email protection, while blocking intrusion attempts. All the while, TMG supports remote connections for users, and features simplified deployment and management processes. Customers will also be able to integrate TMG with Forefront Security Suite (codename Stirling).
Jensen enumerated the key features of TMG: “Web AntiMalware will inspect HTTP traffic for malware and viruses; HTTPS Inspection - Forefront TMG Beta 2 acts as a trusted intermediary that un-encrypts the traffic, inspects it, and then re-encrypts it; Network Inspection System - a corollary to the rise of Web-hosted attack vectors is the rise of the application-layer attack. The Network Inspection System acts as an application-layer shield for vulnerabilities. This enables you time to complete your system patching and helps close the vulnerability window.”
Jensen also promised that Microsoft was looking to add URL blocking capabilities to TMG in future releases. However, for the time being, URL filtering was not included in Forefront Threat Management Gateway Beta 2.
Forefront Threat Management Gateway Beta 2 is available for download here.