Security spending

Dear Minu,
The article 'Security in Indian Enterprises' in the April 2003 issue was very informative. Management students and those marketing security products and solutions will benefit much from this article. The analysis of security requirements, and implementation of security in various verticals of Indian industry leads security products and solution providers to once again think about the rules of selling high-end security products like PKI and digital certificates in India. Now I'd like to know about spending trends in various verticals on different security solutions. Could you point me to some published reports or surveys for this?

Regards
Aneesh Shrivastava

Dear Aneesh,
Thank you for appreciating our story. Beginning 2002, Network Magazine conducted its own annual survey titled 'Infrastructure Strategies.' We are currently conducting research for the same and will publish our analysis in the June 2003 issue. So the information you seek is just around the corner.

Networking

Dear Brian,
I completed the MCA course in 2002. I'm now working as a systems engineer in a software company in Bangalore. The job involves maintenance of computers on a LAN, troubleshooting network problems and customer support. I regret that I don't have any international certification. I am well versed with Windows NT, Windows 2000 and with the configuration of Cisco devices. I can troubleshoot all kinds of hardware and LAN problems. I can also debug C, C++, and Java problems. However, I do not want to continue working in the traditional LAN environment. I'd much rather focus on the latest networking trends. But as you know, networking has lots of specialized areas. I plan to pursue these new areas through specialized networking courses. However I am a bit confused in choosing specific areas in networking. I seek your guidance in this matter and trust you are well aware of the hot areas in networking that may present several job opportunities in future.

Regards
M. Sudhakar

Dear Sudhakar,
Like all things in the computer field, networking technology too is quite dynamic. But if you follow trends reported by the numerous technology news websites, or read technology magazines, you'll get a clear indication of where networking is heading. I see a lot of promise for certified Information Security professionals, particularly in the areas of security auditing and product specialization. There are security certifications like CISA, CISM, CISSP, SCNA etc. And there are companies in India (like Secure Synergy and Miel e-Security, among others) who offer training for some of these certifications. Other hot areas right now are Wireless Networking and Storage Area Networks (SAN). We have done a couple of stories on WLAN (wireless LAN) and SAN in the past. Do access these through the Archives section of our website. I suggest you pursue vendor certifications for both areas. Again, a search on the Web will offer names of leading vendors in these areas.