IBM has made a fleet of announcements regarding new security options for firms operating virtual environments, explaining that by using them firms could better secure information, applications, and infrastructures.

The first announcement concerns a research initiative released by the IBM X-Force and IBM Research units. Phantom, as it is known, offers firms a way of securing their virtualized server environments, and provides a layer of management software. IBM said that this solved the tricky problem of securing non-physical environments, something it believes firms typically struggle with.

Also announced was IBM's Tivoli Key Lifecycle Manager. This, the firm said, offered encryption key security for storage devices, such as USB thumbsticks. The manager also supports compliance with relevant laws, according to IBM.

"Many businesses today have no formal, scalable process to manage thousands of encryption keys across several terabytes of data. IBM Tivoli Key Lifecycle Manager helps reduce the complexity and cost of managing the key lifecycle by automating the management process from key registration to changes and updates to archiving and destruction of tapes," said Al Zollar, general manager, IBM Tivoli Software.

Another announcement was an enhancement to the IBM Information security portfolio, the Unstructured Data Security Solution. This, IBM, said, would secure material across a number of disparate systems and in doing so, prevent the unauthorised leakage of information.

Other announcements concerned access and rights management. Full details are available on IBM's web site.