With a new product on the way and the company's acquisition now a few months old, Watchfire Chief Technology Officer Michael Weider has his eye on the future. Watchfire was acquired by IBM in July. On Nov. 19, the IT giant will officially release IBM Rational AppScan 7.7, a Web application security tool based on Watchfire's flagship AppScan product. The product identifies, validates and reports on gaps in Web applications.

<A HREF="http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,2218393,00.asp?kc=EWRSS03119TX1K0000594">The latest version includes new features</A> such as Scan Expert and State Inducer designed to make the product easier to use for IT professionals with less of a background in application testing. It also includes recorded Web-based training to educate users on application security and compliance to industry standards.