Launches new version of Privilege Manager to manage Vista Integrity levels.

BeyondTrust Corporation, today announced a new version of its flagship Least Privilege Management product, BeyondTrust Privilege Manager 4.0, the first product to use Group Policy to manage Vista Integrity Levels. It states that the Privilege Manager now enables customers to set the integrity level of an application process to create an enhanced Least Privilege security environment. Privilege Manager 4.0 also provides new on-demand capabilities that enable authorized users to elevate the privileges of applications not previously specified, complementing the product's ability to manage privileges for specified processes. In addition, Privilege Manager 4.0 introduces other features to make it easier for companies to receive the benefits of User Account Control security without prompting users with dialogue boxes, explains the the company.

The company articulated that at the RSA Conference 2008 in April, Microsoft said it included User Account Control in the Windows Vista operating system to 'annoy' users and pressure software vendors to create products that run without requiring users to have administrator rights. Further BeyondTrust Privilege Manager 4.0 enables enterprises to eliminate administrator rights while allowing users to run all authorized applications by transparently granting administrative privileges to the specified applications that require them. This makes systems more secure by giving users only the minimal rights they need to do their jobs. Privilege Manager 4.0 makes the transition to a Least Privilege environment even easier with new policy rules to simplify the process of granting elevated privileges, claims the company.

"Microsoft's goal of removing admin rights to boost security is laudable but the approach ha" left many enterprises unwilling to deploy Vista at this time," said John Moyer, CEO of BeyondTrust. "Security pop-ups and prompts hurt productivity and swamp Help Desks with calls, particularly in organizations with hundreds or thousands of employees. BeyondTrust Privilege Manager 4.0 makes Windows more manageable and enterprises more secure by eliminating the need for administrator rights, and the best part is end-users don't even know it's working."