Although the major vendors support a number of security standards, products and methods, these companies are forming partnerships to keep pace as the technology improves and customers become more knowledgeable about security. For example, Commerce One is building security into its products by partnering with security tool kit provider Baltimore Solutions. No one product or technology solves all security problems. Some people think digital signatures are the latest silver bullet, but digital signatures do not guarantee security. That's only a piece of security, like everything else.
Operating systems have security holes.
Therefore, systems built upon these OSes inherit the problems, Treese says. He recommends that companies first develop a security policy. One of the biggest mistakes companies make is abstracting the problem to the point where they're not following their own security policy. Microsoft is trying to take the guesswork out of securing B2B systems with its Internet Security and Acceleration Server, which acts as a general-purpose firewall to prevent intrusions and DoS attacks. Aimed at exchange operators and trading partners alike, the product sits in front of an application or a Web server to avert attacks.