NSS Labs may have ceased operations on October 15 this year, but its previously unpublished test data will now be used in a new organization created by former CEO Vikram Phatak. This was reported by the resource Dark Reading.
Fatak, who has worked for NSS Labs for 11 years, has opened CyberRatings.org in Austin, Texas, which will produce ratings, reports and analyze security products and services. The new organization’s first release will be product ratings based on new and unpublished NSS Labs testing for software defined wide area network (SD-WAN) vendor proposals, followed by ratings for next-generation firewalls and intrusion prevention systems. CyberRatings.org aims to provide a more open and comprehensive source of security product ratings that also reaches the consumer sector, Fatak said.
CyberRatings.org will include strategic information about cybersecurity firms in its rankings, such as their financial health, hiring and firing senior executives.
When creating CyberRatings.org, Fatak ditched NSS Labs’ island model, which he said often created an atmosphere of confrontation between NSS Labs and security vendors.
Several former NSS Labs employees have joined Fatak in the new organization, including former VP of Marketing and Corporate Affairs, Cathy Main, and some testing analysts who worked for the now-closed company.
CyberRatings.org’s free community membership includes testing of security products and services as well as aggregate ratings. The firm also offers higher level memberships with greater access to testing data and analysis. For example, a personal membership costs $ 100 per year and includes detailed reports on product ratings.
Soon, the organization plans to offer professional memberships for $ 500 a year, memberships for small businesses for $ 1,000 a year, and memberships for corporate clients and service providers for $ 10,000 a year.