Patent ID: 7797423

Claim:
A network access device adapted to provide network security functions, comprising: a software stack operative to run on said access device; and first network security apparatus for use with said stack, said security apparatus adapted to communicate data with other network security apparatus resident on a computing device over a data network by establishing an association, and where said first network security apparatus is configured to: receive a message sent from said other network security apparatus of said computing device over a first physically non-secure network; determine whether an association between said network security apparatus and said other network security apparatus of said computing device on said network exists; convert at least a portion of said received message to a format utilized by said network; and transmit said message received from said other network security apparatus of said computing device to a third network security apparatus over a second physically non-secure network when said association does exist without having to resort to an external entity to secure communications between said other network security apparatus and said third network security apparatus; wherein said establishing of said association between said first network security apparatus and said other network security apparatus resident on said computing device results in the execution of a key exchange algorithm in which said network access device and said computing device exchange cryptographic keys over said first physically non-secure network.