WHAT IS GOING ON AT INTEL ?


So last year Intel splash out almost $8bn on (one of their largest ever acquisitions) on  McAfee  in their quest to keep abreast of the rapidly moving Internet security market.   One of their motivations was :

“But Intel will take it one step further. The McAfee deal will see the integration of security into hardware, into the chips powering much of our computer-driven world. It also bolsters Intel's attempts to become more than a chip maker as it develops its own consumer devices and offering of IT services. “ 
(http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-11025866)

And yet today they announce :

“Phishers are getting so good and so numerous that even the most technically adept of online bankers should think twice before typing in that password. Even if it's a legit site, databases can be infiltrated and passwords can be cracked. Time for something more, then. Intel is working on it, teaming up with Symantec and Vasco on what's being broadly termed Identity Protection Technology, or IPT.” 

(http://www.engadget.com/2011/02/15/intel-working-with-symantec-and-vasco-for-ipt-hardware-based-se/)

So you have to say:  Was the McAfee deal fatally flawed ?    Has Intel become schizophrenic ?   Is the security market potentially so lucrative that you become totally promiscuous and jump into bed with anyone who says yes ?   Maybe the RSA conference is going to be where these strands all come together ??  Who knows?

To cap it all this week Intel Capital announced that they have invested in a small security company called SecureKey.   We don’t know how much – but it would have been extremely modest relative to the McAfee deal.   The point is that SecureKey is nothing more than a re-hash of old technology – key fobs / USB keys.   It is also limited in its application to users of smart cards.   So all of this stuff that you have to carry around with you for security.   All very expensive, non-scalable and insecure.   Check it out for yourself.  (http://www.securekey.com/)

You have to say:   what are the boys at Intel thinking ?   Maybe there is another announcement coming at RSA which will help us all make sense of this – but I suspect not. 

Watch this space.  

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