Columbia West Properties Deploys OpenDNS Enterprise to protect four luxury hotels and its corporate network from inappropriate content, conserve precious bandwidth and centralize management.
SAN FRANCISCO (PRWEB) February 15, 2012
Prior to deploying OpenDNS Enterprise, the Columbia West Properties’ IT team was facing an uphill battle conserving precious bandwidth on its networks and preventing access to unsavory or malicious Internet content. Prior to using OpenDNS Enterprise, the Columbia West team was forced to spend valuable resources identifying offending sites and individually blacklisting them. Additionally, the team would have needed to individually deploy appliances and perform time-consuming maintenance at the 4 different hotel locations when updates were required.
The Columbia West Properties’ IT Team selected OpenDNS Enterprise because the service immediately solved a multitude of problems across their networks: Employees are prevented from stumbling across inappropriate or unsavory websites, customer data is protected from being communicated off its network via malware or botnets, bandwidth consumption is under control and IT security management is centralized. Alternative options, including appliances, software-based solutions, and firewall modules or add-ons would have only solved a portion of these issues, and come at a greater cost of time and resources.
The Columbia West Properties’ IT team was also searching for a solution that would help them engage in a more proactive IT security strategy. David Thomson, director of IT for Columbia West Properties explains, “At our boutique properties like the HotelFive in downtown Seattle or the Maxwell Hotel in Seattle’s Queen Ann neighborhood, it’s paramount that our guests’ private information remain secure. OpenDNS Enterprise lets us employ measures to prevent employees from getting to sites that could download malware or botnets and intercept customer data.”
Since deploying OpenDNS Enterprise, Columbia West Properties’ IT Team has seen considerable improved efficiency in how their IT security is managed. “OpenDNS Enterprise automatically updates site categories we’re blocking, saving us valuable time,” Thomson said. “Plus, remote management makes my work so much easier. When I have filtering rules set for one property such as our University Inn hotel, I can easily copy them over to our other property, the Watertown hotel, with just the click of a button, even though I may be hours away from these hotels at the time”
Thomson concluded: “We have a reputation to uphold with our customers and we cannot risk letting them down because of a hole in network security. With OpenDNS Enterprise, we’re not exposed to such risk.”
About OpenDNS
OpenDNS is the world's leading provider of Internet security and DNS services, enabling the world to connect to the Internet with confidence on any device, anywhere, any time. OpenDNS provides millions of businesses, schools and households with a safer, faster and more intelligent Internet experience by protecting them from malicious Web threats and providing them control over how users navigate the Internet, while dramatically increasing the network's overall performance and reliability. For more information about OpenDNS, please visit: http://www.opendns.com.
About Columbia West Properties
A family-owned and operated business, Columbia West Properties (CWP) owns, manages and develops a variety of commercial, retail, multi-family and hospitality properties in Washington state. Founded by Diane Foreman in 1988, CWP is currently managed by her daughter, Michelle Foreman Barnet, who serves as president, in conjunction with Diane and her husband Richard Foreman who serve as co-CEOs. CWP’s notable properties include Bellevue’s Pacific Plaza; Waterworks Marina and Offices; the historic Holyoke Building,HotelFIVE and Maxwell Hotel in downtown Seattle; and the University Inn and Watertown Hotel in Seattle’s University District. Other projects currently in development include the Second Avenue Towers on Virginia Street in downtown Seattle (currently in planning phase). For more information, please visit http://www.columbiawestproperties.com.
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Allison Rhodes
OpenDNS
415.344.3200
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