Watching over the Web: a new leader in XML Web Services security.

• Author: Ling, Ben

It's only a matter of time before a hack attack strikes some unwary business hopping on the XML Web Services bandwagon, says Weston Swenson. But, as president and CEO of Forum Systems, a Utah-based company that specializes in Web Services security, he is ready to fight off those attacks with his company's award-winning products.

Web Services are a set of protocols that allow applications to grab information from multiple computers. These services rely on extensible markup language, or XML, to share documents over disparate computer platforms and promise greater efficiency and automation than traditional, stand-alone computer systems. The problem is that XML and Web Services allow too much access to data and systems, leaving businesses vulnerable to information theft, documents tampering and viruses.

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The potential attacks are well documented in the trade press. The phrase "Web Services security" generates more than 93,000 hits on Google, but proponents often soft-pedal threats while salivating over potential benefits. "I see it every time I attend user groups or conferences. They say Web Services are great. And then they address security, but it's in the footnotes," Swenson says.

That shortcoming looked like a huge opportunity to Swenson and some of his network security colleagues, so they founded Forum Systems in May 2001 and now claim to be the industry's leading provider of XML Web Services security. Notable others seem to agree. Mountain West Venture Group named Forum Systems to the Emerging Elite, a list of the 14 most promising new companies in Utah. Another group of investors led by GMG Capitol Partners recently...