The Enterprise Grid Alliance (EGA) unveiled its Enterprise Grid Security Requirements document, arming users with information needed to evaluate and make informed risk management decisions as they deploy enterprise Grids.

Building on the EGA's Reference Model, the technical results from the Grid Security Working Group empower end-users by illustrating the risks and threats inherent in enterprise Grid computing and outlining a set of security requirements to better equip organizations with the information needed to protect themselves. Enterprise Grid computing technology and service providers can use this information in developing products and configuring systems, making them more secure, competitive and readily able to support their customers' Grid security needs.

"We believe members of the EGA's Grid Security Working Group have a rare combination of Grid computing and security expertise.  We've leveraged these skill sets over the last year by reviewing computing infrastructures and identifying the security threats, issues and requirements associated with enterprise Grid computing," said Lee Cooper, chairman of the Enterprise Grid Alliance Grid Security working group and director of security program management at Oracle. "As a result of our analysis, we've concluded that enterprise Grid environments are better positioned to satisfy a company's security and compliance objectives when compared to traditional models of computing. This appears true during initial deployment, as well as throughout the lifetime of the Grid."

The document provides a basis for collaboration among organizations to help eliminate redundant standards development activities and more quickly eliminate barriers to adoption. Like all of the EGA's work, these requirements are vendor neutral, technology and implementation agnostic, and will be continuously updated as the enterprise Grid marketplace evolves. Future versions will describe how these requirements can be satisfied using existing and new technologies, processes and recommended practices.

The EGA was launched in April 2004 to accelerate the deployment of Grids in enterprise data centers. Since its inception, the EGA has increased its membership 45 percent, founded two regional steering committees (in Europe and Japan), launched the industry's first Reference Model and established five individually chartered technical working groups to address specific areas including the reference model, component provisioning, data provisioning, security and utility accounting.

To download a copy of the Enterprise Grid Security Requirements document and the Reference Model, visit www.gridalliance.org/en/workgroups/GridSecurity.asp.