Multi-tiered security app can be scaled for small businesses up through enterprises and can also be had a la carte Vasco Data Security International has incorporated its authentication technology into a security appliance it launched on Wednesday.The appliance, aXs Guard, came under Vasco’s wing after its acquisition of Able NV, a security company based in Mechelen, Belgium, in December 2006. Vasco makes a variety of authentication products, including hardware tokens that generate one-time passwords for stronger authentication before, for example, a banking transaction on the Internet.Vasco said it bought Able for its unified threat management technology, which wraps functions like e-mail security, a firewall, and content scanning and other functions into one software and hardware package. Vasco said it has woven its Vacman middleware and Digipass strong authentication technology into the aXs Guard appliance, which sits in between the Internet and a company’s LAN.The company also produces controllers that enable stronger authentication capabilities on top of applications, such as IBM’s Lotus Domino e-mail server, even if those applications already have their own authentication mechanisms.AXs Guard comes in nine models and can accommodate small businesses through enterprises, Vasco said. It also offers an a la carte service, which lets users pick hardware or software modules in aXs Guard with respect to equipment or software they may already own. Pricing information was not immediately available. SecurityEndpoint Protection