This IDC study, which is a translation of the Japanese document IDC #J12200109, studies and analyzes the business situation and the trends of vendors entering the software-as-a-service (SaaS) security software market by its functional market. The study and analysis was conducted on the three market segments, which are identity and access management (IAM), secure content and threat management (SCTM), and security and vulnerability management (SVM).

SaaS security solutions are being deployed, mainly in small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), due to its easy implementation, operation, and management. However, the demand for SaaS security solutions in large enterprises is also growing since the Great Eastern Japan Earthquake, as companies seek disaster recovery and business continuity measures. In addition, the SaaS security software market is in its growth phase with limited number of vendors, and smaller number of solutions compared with on-premise security software. "Vendors are required to provide scalable SaaS security solutions that are capable of covering the needs from SMBs to large enterprises. Therefore, it is vital for vendors to develop menus that matched implementation scale and enhance their SaaS solution lineup," says Tsuneo Tosaka, Software and Security Research Manager, IDC Japan.