In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, business network IT managers face an ever-increasing challenge: ensuring the security of their networks.
One of the most prominent trends contributing to this challenge is the growing reliance on business cloud applications. Companies are increasingly adopting cloud services for their scalability, cost-effectiveness, and accessibility. However, this shift also exposes businesses to new security risks. IT managers must grapple with the complexities of securing sensitive data and applications stored off-site, often in third-party data centers.
Another critical aspect of this challenge stems from the inherent vulnerabilities of using broadband internet connections. While these connections offer high-speed access to the cloud, they also expose businesses to various security threats. Cybercriminals exploit these vulnerabilities through tactics like phishing attacks, DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks, and malware distribution. IT managers are expected to deploy, configure, and maintain advanced firewall security policies to safeguard their networks against such threats.
The proliferation of remote workers has further complicated the security landscape. With the advent of flexible work arrangements, employees access corporate networks from various locations and devices. This introduces the risk of unauthorized access, data leakage, and unsecured connections. IT managers must implement secure remote access solutions, enforce strong authentication protocols, and educate employees on cybersecurity best practices.
Moreover, the rise of “bring your own devices” (BYOD) has become a double-edged sword for businesses. While it enhances employee productivity and flexibility, it also increases the number of endpoints connecting to the corporate network, each potentially carrying its vulnerabilities. IT managers need comprehensive BYOD policies, mobile device management solutions, and regular patch management to mitigate these risks.
The challenges of network and cloud security for business network IT managers are continuously evolving. To navigate these challenges successfully, IT managers need a more cost-effective approach that optimizes network security and cloud application performance while reducing the cost and complexity.
The Cybersecurity Challenge for Small & Medium Businesses
- 51% of small businesses have no cybersecurity measures in place
- 61% of SMBs were the target of a Cyberattack in 2021
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5 Limitations of Corporate Firewalls
- Cost Acquiring enterprise-grade firewalls can be a substantial investment, especially for small and medium-sized businesses. Moreover, these expenses are not one-time; IT managers must plan for the recurring cost of replacing hardware every few years to keep up with evolving security threats and technological advancements. This financial burden can strain budget allocations, diverting resources away from other critical IT projects.
- Complexity Configuring security policies on firewalls is an intricate and time-consuming task. Managing a firewall’s rule set and ensuring that it aligns with the organization’s security requirements can be complex. Mistakes or misconfigurations can inadvertently open security vulnerabilities or disrupt legitimate network traffic. This complexity demands skilled personnel and thorough testing, adding to the operational overhead.
- Maintenance Firewall firmware updates are essential for ensuring ongoing protection against emerging threats. However, this process can be frustrating as it often requires scheduled downtime and may result in unexpected issues. IT managers must carefully plan for these updates, balancing security with minimal disruption to business operations.
- Performance While advanced security features on firewalls are essential, they can impact network throughput. Intricate inspection processes, such as deep packet inspection, can slow down network performance, especially in high-traffic environments. IT managers must strike a delicate balance between security and performance, often requiring fine-tuning and optimization efforts.
- Remote Access Providing VPN access to both the corporate network and cloud-based business applications is a critical need, especially in the era of remote work. However, routing all remote worker internet traffic through the company firewall can lead to poor user experiences and waste network bandwidth. This approach can result in latency issues and congestion, impacting productivity and frustrating remote employees.
Corporate network firewalls, while vital for security, come with a set of limitations and frustrations that business network IT managers must navigate. Overcoming the costs, complexity, maintenance, and performance impact of firewalls requires a migration to a new generation of cloud-based security solutions known as SASE (Secure Access Service Edge). IT managers need a strategy that allows them to migrate from their current firewall solutions to a more secure and efficient SASE environment at their own pac
SASE: Network Security for the Cloud Generation
Adaptiv Networks has a history of cloud-managed SD-WAN innovation backed by our industry leading patent portfolio. For 20 years, we’ve been delivering cloud-connectivity for businesses who value simplicity, performance, and cost-effectiveness. By leveraging our unique capabilities as an SD-WAN overlay network provider, Adaptiv Networks has developed new cloud-based security solutions that allow businesses to enjoy a simple, secure, cloud-managed networking experience without the cost, complexity, and limitations of traditional corporate firewalls.
What is SASE?
SASE is a relatively new networking term that’s generating plenty of buzz in the IT community. But, what is it and why is it important? The term SASE was coined in 2019 by Gartner to describe a new networking model that combines SD-WAN (software-defined wide area network) with cloud security. SASE (secure access service edge) is pronounced ‘sassy,’ and include several security features:
- Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA)
- Web Filtering
- Secure Web Gateway (SWG)
- Firewall-as-a-service (FWaaS)
The Roadmap from SD-WAN to SASE
In the real world, we know IT managers face budget challenges. While many businesses have already invested in firewalls, others have outdated firewalls, while some have no firewalls in place at all. Regardless of what your current firewall situation, Adaptiv Networks offers a flexible roadmap with three layers of protection designed to bring SASE within reach of small businesses and mid-sized enterprises.
Secure SD-WAN Network
Adaptiv SD-WAN provides a secure foundation with encrypted connectivity and a “zero-trust” network posture.
+Web Filtering Protection
Web Protect adds powerful URL filtering to control which sites are allowed on your network.
+SASE Cloud Security
Network Protect adds next-gen Firewall-as-a-Service with deep content inspection and Secure Web Gateway.
Step 1: A Secure SD-WAN
A Secure Network Foundation
Adaptiv SD-WAN delivers a better network experience that boosts quality and reliability for business cloud applications. It also provides a base layer of security that includes a stateful firewall at each branch office. Our Adaptiv SD-WAN Edge device operates on a “zero-trust” philosophy that blocks any unknown or unauthorized traffic from the outside. Branch network access is only allowed through the secure encrypted SD-WAN tunnel that keeps your data private.
Adaptiv SD-WAN vs. Firewalls
- Optimal Cloud Performance: Our cloud gateways provide inbound QoS and seamless multi-link failover with no dropped calls.
- Invisible to Attack: Our cloud gateways assign a private IP address to each business site, reducing exposure to DDoS attacks.
- Better Remote Access: Adaptiv My Connect provides simple, secure ZTNA access for hybrid workers without the wasted bandwidth of VPNs.
Step 2: Web Filtering Protection
An added layer of cloud security
Adaptiv Web Protect builds on the foundation of Adaptiv SD-WAN, adding an extra layer of cloud-based web-filtering protection. Web Protect combines ease of use with cost-effectiveness, making it an ideal network security solution for small to mid-sized enterprises (SMEs). While Web Protect is not a full-featured SASE solution, it does provide an affordable cloud security option that fills the gap for businesses who have outdated firewalls or no firewalls whatsoever. As a cloud-managed service offering, Web Protect has zero complexity and no IT expertise is required, you simply choose the right layer of protection that best fits your business.
Web Protect is powered by our network of secure SD-WAN cloud gateways, using first-packet inspection to automatically recognize over 20 million websites that are categorized in our URL database. Based on the template setting you select, Web Protect will automatically block web-borne threats and prevent connection to unauthorized websites. This is a powerful cloud-based URL and DNS filtering solution that is constantly updated to ensure your web filtering protection is always up to date.
Web Protect: Who’s it for?
Web Protect is an inexpensive, managed URL filtering solution deployed using pre-designed security templates, making it amazingly easy to install and manage.
- Businesses that have no firewalls in place. Web Protect significantly enhances their security posture.
- Businesses with firewalls that were not configured and that aren’t kept up to date. These firewalls create a security risk because they offer a false sense of security.
- Businesses who do not have the skills nor the budget to manage next generation firewalls. Web Protect is a simple managed service with zero
IT complexity.
Step 3: Cloud-managed SASE
Advanced Network Security, Simplified.
Building on the secure foundation of Adaptiv SD-WAN, plus the added layer of Web Protect web-filtering, Adaptiv Network Protect takes your network security to the next level. Adaptiv Network Protect is our full-featured SASE solution that combines the peace of mind of having advanced network protection with the simplicity of a cloud-managed service.
Network Protect is designed for enterprises who are ready to upgrade to a simple, cloud-based network security solution that delivers more performance while eliminating the cost and complexity of corporate firewalls. Network Protect combines deep content inspection with AI that monitors over 100 million endpoints to provide advanced real-time threat protection against zero-day attacks.
- Cloud-based Firewall-as-a-Service
- Secure Web Gateway
- Advanced Anti-Malware
- Data Loss Prevention
- Threat Analysis
Adaptiv Network Protect vs. Corporate Firewalls
- Faster Performance: By using our cloud gateways to perform application recognition we avoid any drop in bandwidth throughput.
- Zero Complexity: Our cloud-managed security solutions eliminate the complexity of firewall configuration and firmware updates.
- Grows with Your Business: Unlike firewalls, our SD-WAN and SASE services scale easily with no hardware capex required.
Network Protect: Who’s it for?
A robust cloud-managed SASE solution that provides advanced threat prevention with next generation Firewall-as-a-Service and Secure Web Gateway.
- Businesses with aging firewalls. Replaces their firewalls with a simple, cloud-managed SASE service.
- Businesses who need more bandwidth than existing firewalls can deliver.
Migrate to a scalable SASE service to avoid purchasing new larger firewalls. - Businesses that are migrating out of MPLS. Migrate to a SASE now, with flexibility to keep MPLS until contracts expire.
Conclusion
At Adaptiv Networks, we believe network security should be simpler and more affordable. We’re committed to delivering on the promise of SASE as a cloud-managed service that’s priced within reach of small and mid-sized enterprises.
Regardless of your current network security posture, our product lineup offers a clear roadmap to a more secure cloud networking experience. Whether or not you have existing firewalls, we can get you started with a secure SD-WAN solution that provides a base layer of network security. We can help you eliminate the cost and complexity of firewall management by simply adding our optional cloud security products when the time is right for you.
Web Protect offers amazingly simple and affordable web-filtering protection with zero IT complexity. Network Protect adds deep content inspection to create a full-featured cloud-based SASE solution that offers advanced threat protection with Firewall-as-a-Service and Secure Web Gateway. Whichever level of protection is right for your business, Adaptiv Networks SD-WAN and SASE solutions are delivered as a cloud managed service, so you can focus on your business instead of your network.
Why Adaptiv Networks
- Simple, Affordable SD-WAN and SASE Solutions
- Zero IT Complexity, Delivered as a Managed Service
- Optimal Cloud Performance with Robust Network Security
- Flexible Options Designed to Grow with Your Business
How to add Adaptiv SD-WAN to your business.
Adaptiv SD-WAN is sold as a simple subscription service that includes the SD-WAN edge device, access to the Adaptiv Connect network of intelligent cloud gateways and cloud orchestrator. Our SD-WAN license pricing is based on your network throughput requirements, and we offer unique configuration options that optimize your cost without reducing your bandwidth.
Web Protect, Network Protect, and My Connect are sold as optional add-on subscriptions. All Adaptiv Networks solutions are sold exclusively through our global network of partners, contact us today to discuss your business goals or to find an Adaptiv certified solution provider that’s right for you.
About Adaptiv Networks
Smart, secure business networks that deliver superior cloud performance with the simplicity of a managed service.
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