HP’s been diligent in its transition to software and services for the cloud-ready enterprise, some developments gaining more attention than others.  In the midst of a worrisome PC strategy, HP moves forward with its services sector with the launch of an Enterprise Security business.  By the company’s own admission, security hasn’t been a strong point for HP, and it faces a great deal of competition as a newcomer, with IBM, RSA, Symantec and even Intel, which acquired McAfee already established in the sector.  But if HP’s to be taken seriously in the cloud services business, especially at the enterprise level, security is a necessary step in the right direction.

We take a deeper look at HP’s security goals with an interview with Rebecca Lawson, worldwide director, security and cloud solution marketing for HP Enterprise Security.  As far as HP’s overall goals in security go, HP wants to “provide its clients with an end-to-end security strategy, the tools and expertise required to execute on that strategy so that enterprises can innovate without being hampered or disrupted by security breaches or vulnerabilities.”

“Given the rising occurrences of cyber threats, nation-state attacks, and compliance requirements, coupled with advancing technology like cloud services, mobility and social media in our culture today, businesses and governments need to take a new approach to security to ensure that their processes, technologies and people can effectively deploy a multi-layered system of defense.”

Rising cyber threats is certainly a concern across the board, as we’re closing out a summer of hactivism and the mobile sector promises even more challenges for the enterprise as tablets and virtualized solutions introduce the consumer factor.  We’ve seen an uptick in security solutions being built-in to products and emerging as services, adding support to a growing ecosystem founded in the cloud.

And as HP makes a series of quiet acquisitions, including intelligence firm ArcSight last year for $1.5 billion, and preps for more software services in the coming months, the Enterprise Security release is just one part of HP’s transition away from hardware and PCs.  According to Lawson, ArcSight has become a particularly integral part of HP’s enterprise goals, as the basis for HP’s Security Intelligence and Risk Management platform.  It’s to be integrated into HP’s IT management software, where it can automatically detect information and pass it along to management systems for remediation.  All of these efforts combine to give HP the prowess it needs to make a stand in the securities sector.

“HP’s set of security solutions has been growing for many years now,” Lawson explains. “Over the last few years, HP has developed and acquired quite a few technologies. The company’s acquisition of EDS brought a broader set of managed security service capabilities into the mix as well. Our portfolio now includes software and services for data security, application security, identity and access management, network security, endpoint security.

“We also cover cloud and mobile security both with our products and services. Software, of course, is instrumental in executing on any security strategy. However, the people, knowledge and IP are perhaps even more crucial, because without experienced and certified people who understand the issues, you simply cannot address the kind of threats we see out there today. Security really is an integrative discipline; HP will continue to build its bench strength as well.”

HP’s latest venture is seen as an important step, and Forbes’ analysis is a supportive one.  According to the report, HP’s Enterprise business is one worth keeping, and hints that this could help HP revive investor interest in the company.  Moving forward we’re sure to see more integration from the security side, appointed to the many services HP has planned for the coming years.  It’s a long-term effort but one HP deems worthy of its time and resources.