Introduction and preliminary question re: use of IDS/IPS

[Jason Richardson <A00JER1 () WPO CSO NIU EDU>]

Hi, I discovered this list and the Unisog list yesterday and subscribed
immediately.  I am IT Security Manager at Northern Illinois Univ.  We
are a fairly large state university (approx. 25K undergrad + grad
schools) located west of Chicago.  I have searched the archives for
discussion re: the use of IDS and IPS on university campuses and found a
few posts but not much discussion so I decided to go ahead and post my
question.  My apologies if this has been discussed before under a thread
that I didn't see.  How prevalent is the use of IDS/IPS on campus
networks?  We have been using an IDS that hasn't really worked out for
us for the past two years and we are considering replacing it.  Our
network engineering staff has some concerns about the longevity of
IDS/IPS and whether such systems will even be in use 5 years from now.
My reading so far has led me to believe that while pure IDS is probably
on its way out, IPS is alive and well and will be for some time.  I was
hoping to get a general sense of whether such systems are being used to
secure campus networks.  To narrow the inquiry somewhat, I am referring
more to NIDS than HIDS but we are looking at HIDS also.

Thanks in advance for any feedback,

---
Jason Richardson, J.D., CISSP, CISM. CNE
Manager, IT Security and Client Development
Enterprise Systems Support
Northern Illinois University
Voice: 815-753-1678
Fax: 815-753-2555
jasrich () niu edu

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