ITWire

The headline feature of Blue Coat's PacketShaper version 9 is that it can control IPv6 traffic that's being tunnelled through corporate IPv4 networks. The company claims this is an industry first.

The problem, according to Blue Coat officials, is that many computers and devices are IPv6 enabled, and a variety of content providers (including Netflix and YouTube) and applications already support IPv6. But until now, devices such as the PacketShaper have been unable to inspect IPv6 packets within IPv4 traffic.

"PacketShaper version 9 uniquely provides visibility of IPv6 traffic secretly traversing corporate IPv4 networks," said Qing Li, chief scientist at Blue Coat. "PacketShaper gives businesses the ability to regain control of their networks to monitor compliance with IPv6 evolutions, audit against security and infrastructure migration plans, and align with business priorities."

But it's not just a matter of enforcing corporate policies relating to Internet use. Blue Coat officials say IPv6 is being used as a way of penetrating corporate networks, and for communication with malware that's found its way onto computers.

The PacketShaper 9 software is available as a free upgrade for owners of the PacketShaper appliance with current service agreements.