On the back of increased threats from malware, hackers and criminal activity, sales of network security appliances and software are reporting strong growth. Infonetics Research has recently reported that the market grew 20% to US$5.2 billion last year and worldwide secure router sales jumped 39% from 2006 to 2007.
Other statistics highlighted by the report include: worldwide network security appliance and software sales were up 4% in the fourth quarter of 2007; integrated appliances and software represented 85% of all network security revenue; and Cisco continues to lead the overall security market, followed by Juniper and Check Point. In terms of geographic distribution, North America continues to dominate, accounting for 45% of spending on network security appliances and software revenue. EMEA accounts for 30%, the Asia Pacific region 20% and Central and Latin America 5%.
“2007 was a strong year across the board for the network security market, with nearly all sectors contributing to strong growth,” said Jeff Wilson, principal analyst for network security at Infonetics Research. “Secure routers and SSL VPN gateways did particularly well in 2007 and we expect them to continues selling well at until 2011.”
And its not just network security that is experiencing growth, Wilson also reports that sales of content security gateways were up 9% in the fourth quarter of 2007 and up 36% for the year, hitting US$1.6bn. Wilson also projects that the content security appliance and software market will hit US$2.5bn in 2011.
The economic downturn will have little impact, adds Wilson. “The content security market is moving forward rapidly due to strong performance by vendors of all type and size serving a very real need to secure networks,” he said. “The uncertain state of the US economy could actually help bolster this market; some buyers increase security spending during a prolonged downturn because of increased criminal or hacking activity.”