Survey sponsored by Ciena highlights need for comprehensive security approach

Ciena® Corporation (NASDAQ: CIEN), the network specialist, today announced the results of a Vanson Bourne survey indicating that more than one-third of surveyed European enterprises (36%) have experienced an increase in the frequency of network and data security-related incidents in the last 18 months. These results highlight the increasing need for network operators to deploy a comprehensive security approach that encompasses server security as well as at-rest and in-flight encryption, given that just nearly one-third (36%) of surveyed enterprises deploy in-flight encryption on the WAN links between sites and data centres.

Key Facts:

  • Germany is leading the way when it comes to in-flight WAN encryption, with about half (49%) of surveyed companies stating that they use in-flight encryption on WAN data link between sites or data centres. In contrast, in the Netherlands and France about a third of enterprises (36 and 33% respectively) have adopted in-flight encryption, and in the UK only about a quarter (24%).
  • The most affected country by the trend of increased security-related incidents is France, where nearly half (49%) of enterprises have noticed an increase in security threats; followed by Germany (40%), the UK (28%) and the Netherlands (25%). The most affected sector is utilities with over half of companies (54%) having mentioned an increase.
  • Encryption of corporate devices and data at the application layer are the most popular encryption methods and are deployed by about half of surveyed organisations (53% and 48% respectively). Only one-tenth (11%) of surveyed enterprises do not deploy any encryption method. In contrast, in the public sector a higher proportion (16%) of surveyed organisations have no encryption in place, even though almost one-third (29%) of them have experienced an increase in security threats in the last 18 months.
  • The Netherlands and Germany are expected to lead the adoption of in-flight encryption in the near future. From the enterprises that are not currently deploying in-flight encryption, circa one-third plan to adopt the method for the first time (36% and 31% respectively). When broken down by sector, transport (40%), finance (33%) and utility organisations (22%) are expected to lead the adoption of in-flight encryption.

Executive Comment:

  • “Today’s technology-intensive environment relies on communications networks to deliver information safely among individuals and organisations. Yet, as technology has become more complex, these survey results show that threats against keeping information safe have also become more frequent, complex and pervasive. A comprehensive security approach should find the right balance between three key elements: server security, at-rest encryption and in-flight encryption. The survey results show that enterprises underestimate the value of in-flight encryption, securing information stored in devices whilst running an unsecured network is a bit like locking all the windows in a house, but leaving the front door open.”
    -          Mervyn Kelly, EMEA marketing director at Ciena

Technology Leadership:

  • Ciena's encryption solution simplifies the deployment of secure network services for enterprises by combining market-leading optical transport technologies with powerful, standards-based encryption functionality in a single, integrated infrastructure - minimising points for potential network failure and significantly reducing capital and operating expenditures by eliminating the need for standalone encryption-only network elements.
  • Ciena offers Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) certified, networkable encryption solutions for low-latency, highly secure and transparent end-to-end communications to address the security and encryption requirements of its government and enterprise customers. Ciena’s encryption solution also features protocol-agnostic encryption that offers flexibility to support a variety of services including Ethernet, SONET and OTN, and is scalable to 40G and 100G networks.

About the Survey:

  • The research project surveyed 400 senior IT decision makers, including an equal number of participants from the United Kingdom, Germany, France and The Netherlands.
  • 46% of the companies surveyed have more than 3,000 employees, 44% have between 1,000 and 3,000 employees, and 10% between 500 and 1,000.
  • The online survey was conducted by Vanson Bourne in December 2012.

Supporting Resources:

About Ciena
Ciena is the network specialist. We collaborate with customers worldwide to unlock the strategic potential of their networks and fundamentally change the way they perform and compete. Ciena leverages its deep expertise in packet and optical networking and distributed software automation to deliver solutions in alignment with OPn, its approach for building open next-generation networks. We enable a high-scale, programmable infrastructure that can be controlled and adapted by network-level applications, and provide open interfaces to coordinate computing, storage and network resources in a unified, virtualized environment. We routinely post recent news, financial results and other important announcements and information about Ciena on our website. For more information, visit www.ciena.com.

Note to Ciena Investors
Forward-looking statements. This press release contains certain forward-looking statements based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties. These statements are based on information available to the Company as of the date hereof; and Ciena's actual results could differ materially from those stated or implied, due to risks and uncertainties associated with its business, which include the risk factors disclosed in its Report on Form 10-Q, which Ciena filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 13, 2013. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding Ciena's expectations, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future and can be identified by forward-looking words such as "anticipate," "believe," "could," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "should," "will," and "would" or similar words. Ciena assumes no obligation to update the information included in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.