What does the NSS Labs Next Generation Firewall Security Value Map measure?

Question

Options

• Asecurity effectiveness versus total cost of ownership
• Bsecurity effectiveness versus total system downtime
• Ctotal cost of ownership versus advertised maximum throughput
• Dsecurity effectiveness versus advertised maximum throughput

• A
  87% (27)
• B
  6% (2)
• C
  3% (1)
• D
  3% (1)

Explanation

NSS Labs' Security Value Map (SVM) plots products on a two-axis chart where security effectiveness (vertical) is measured against total cost of ownership (horizontal), allowing buyers to see which products deliver the most protection per dollar spent. Option A is correct because "value" in this context is explicitly defined as the relationship between what you get (security) and what you pay (TCO).

Why the distractors fail:

• B is wrong because system downtime is an operational metric, not a cost metric - NSS doesn't use uptime as an axis.
• C is wrong because it drops security effectiveness entirely; advertised throughput appears in NSS's TCO per Protected Mbps calculations but is not a standalone SVM axis.
• D is close and tempting - NSS does test advertised throughput versus actual performance - but that's a separate metric (throughput efficacy), not the SVM's axes.

Memory tip: Think of the acronym SVM = Security vs. Money. A "value map" always answers "how much security do I get for my money?" - security effectiveness (quality) on one axis, TCO (cost) on the other.

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