Envision the Future

Oct 2008 , Sponsored by Verizon Business

State technology leaders across the nation are envisioning a future powered by Internet protocol and are quickly embracing IP products and services to enrich the lives of those living and working in the states. With state governments tapping the power of IP services at a rapid clip, network convergence is moving from theory to reality.

Convergence typically refers to taking historically separate voice and data networks and "converging" them into a single system to support IP-enabled devices such as phones, computers, cameras and applications yet to be conceived. Technology leaders in government and the private sector are embracing IP to streamline networks, control costs and introduce new communications tools.

As the work force becomes more mobile, convergence empowers governments and enterprises to extend their reach beyond the traditional four walls. Whether it's a college campus updating from a legacy network to an IP network to facilitate distance learning or a state agency adopting video conferencing to keep up with agents in the field, network convergence changes how we conduct business in our daily lives.

The technology has finally caught up with the vision. Voice over IP (VoIP) calls no longer sound like two people talking through soup cans and a string.

Technological advances have brought the quality of VoIP calls on par with traditional analog services. More importantly, IP transmits all information in digital form, creating opportunities for unified communications - the integration of fixed and mobile devices and applications.

As the lines between voice, video and data blur, visionary state leaders are redefining the business of government. Enterprises are moving from legacy networks to next-generation IP networks based on multiprotocol label switching (MPLS). These advanced networks meet new bandwidth demands and enable services such as hosted VoIP, private IP and managed services for years to come.

California technology leaders have embarked on a visionary path through CALNET II to deploy IP services to improve the experience for those who live and work in the Golden State. In Texas, through two new contracts - Information Technology Security Services and Managed Services for Information Technology - state leaders are putting the mechanics in place to make IP convergence through secure managed networks a reality in the Lone Star State.

Verizon Business, as an IP leader and network-based provider of integrated communications and computing solutions, is at the forefront of network convergence for businesses, agencies and educational institutions in the United States and around the globe. We stand ready to work with governments to develop and implement a comprehensive strategy to realize the full potential of IP to meet the demands of today - and those yet to come.

Data Breaches Analyzed
You've seen the headlines about data security breaches. Now you can see the facts behind them. Verizon Business recently published the 2008 Data Breach Investigations Report. The report involved four years of research, taking into account more than 500 forensic investigations of data breaches covering more than 230 million records. Experts analyzed hundreds of corporate breaches, including three of the five largest ones ever reported.

Numerous findings from the report underscore the importance of taking proper security measures to protect data. Nearly 90 percent of the breaches studied could have been avoided had reasonable security measures been in place.

Several factors contributed to the conclusion by researchers that most attacks could have been prevented. For 90 percent of known vulnerabilities exploited by hackers and malicious code, security patches were available many months prior to the attacks. Of the attacks studied, 83 percent were "not highly difficult" for the criminals.