Perdemia has released Permission Analyzer 2.1, a Windows application that lets network administrators manage NTFS permissions. The software eliminates the mystery - and the dangers - of adding permissions that allow contractors and users to access the proper data stores.

Recent news stories about Hillary Clinton's email server and the breach of the Pentagon's servers might lead network managers to believe that most security threats are external. Security experts tell us, however, that most data breaches happen because of activity within an organization. Permission Analyzer 2.1 provides the tools that business people need to keep their servers safe and secure. By running Permission Analyzer 2.1 regularly, the management team can effectively control employee access to company data.

Unlike other programs that help manage permissions on a network, Permission Analyzer 2.1 scans an entire network and builds a database that can then be used by network administrators, chief information officers (CIOs), systems auditors, or any authorized employees who need to manage the network. Multiple users can use the database to perform queries and to show results in seconds, without scanning the network for every overview that is being built by a user. This design eliminates unnecessary network traffic, and dramatically reduces network load.

Permission Analyzer 2.1 can scan an entire network, or focus on specific computers and directories. You can even analyze nested group information by selecting LDAP organizational units to scan. Once the database has been updated with the current information, users can run reports or query the database by creating filters that include or exclude members, permissions, files, or folders.

A unique feature of Permission Analyzer 2.1's design is its ability to work with all of the members from an Active Directory group or Organizational Unit. With competitors' software, if a user wants to ensure that nobody in the Consultants group had access to the Personnel Department's folder, it would be necessary to inspect every member in the Consultants group individually. With Permission Analyzer 2.1, the user could use a single query to ensure that no members of the Consultants group has access to the Personnel information. In just a few minutes, network administrators could ensure that only the proper people have access to personnel folders, the legal department's confidential information, top management's planning directories, and other sensitive data.

It is easy to save selections of filters, exports, and policies and run them automatically using Windows Scheduler. Many network administrators, for example, schedule a daily network scan as well as HTML/CSV exports and policies that will send an email notification when unwanted permissions are found.

The software lets you drill down into the database and trace the origin of any group of permissions. Unusual permissions could be inherited from a direct or indirect group membership or from a parent folder. Or such permissions may be indicators of a security breach.

Permission Analyzer 2.1's internal database can support the largest networks that an enterprise might run. In addition, the Enterprise and Consultant Editions of the software work with Oracle, DB2, MS SQL, MySQL, and other popular databases.

Whether you're a network administrator who needs to manage NTFS permissions, a security officer who needs to be sure that every employee and consultant has the proper access and permissions, or a line manager who wants to streamline and automate permissions information, Permission Analyzer 2.1 has the tools that you need.

Permission Analyzer 2.1 runs under Windows Vista or higher. Prices for the Basic Edition begin at $299(US), with affordable Standard, Enterprise, and Consultant Editions available. A trial version is available online, as well as time-limited versions of each of the Permission Analyzer 2.1 editions