Irdeto Access, NDS, Nortel Networks and Sun showed products aimed at answering these concerns. In a nutshell, multicast technology allows information, be it streaming media or data files, to be simultaneously distributed across a network in a broadcast fashion. One reason has been a lack of security. At the moment, companies that want to transfer sensitive information such as financial data or employee briefings using multicast technology have no way of encrypting data as it is sent across the wire, making it vulnerable to interception. CypherCast comes with management software that runs on any Windows platform.
Network managers can adjust user access via the multicast broadcast or across the Internet.
Encryption can take place at the point of origin or at the uplink center if used with satellite technology. NDS' CastGear works in a similar manner. The software mimics middleware and can work with various types of encryption methodologies, including public-key infrastructure products from Baltimore and Entrust. Encryption can take place on the same box as the broadcasting server, though NDS suggests using a separate machine. Both technologies will work with any content and will ship in the second quarter.