The new Threat Prevention capability, which comes through Webroot BrightCloud, is accompanied by a choice of packages with or without the capability, as well as deployment options which allows for data to be assessed at the edge.
Today, Untangle, which makes network security solutions for the SMB market, is announcing the 3.1 version of their Untangle SD-WAN Router. The major enhancement is the availability of an option of new Threat Prevention capabilities at the network edge. Two new packages are also available with this release. One is adding the Threat Protection itself, which is an option for those who want protection at the edge as well as a Secure Gateway. The other is a related deployment option for branch offices, where data can now be assessed at the edge, or back at the corporate network as before.
“Today, the Internet is more and more encrypted, and the only thing you can typically see is an IP address and a certificate,” said Heather Paunet, Senior Vice President of Product and Marketing at Untangle. “We now integrate with Threat Protection technology provided by Webroot BrightCloud. The Threat Protection gives us an assessment of the reputation of the site, and based on that, we can flag it as dangerous and it can be blocked.”
Paunet illustrated two typical use cases.
“Let’s say you have a server inside on the corporate network,” she said. “If something tries to connect to that server from outside that doesn’t get a clean reputation, then it can be blocked. Another use cause would be when a user on the corporate network tries to connect to an address on the outside, and the Threat Prevention deems it to be dangerous. Then it can also be blocked.” The admin has the capability to override this for specific sites.
This Threat Protection capability is a first for the Untangle SD-WAN product, but not for the company as a whole.
“We have supported it for our firewall for some time,” Paunet noted. “It now gives each customer the option of having security either at the network edge or at the gateway with the SD-WAN router. Different customers will want to do different things.”
This desire to give customers choice means the SD-WAN will now be sold in a choice of two packages – a low cost Basic entry package which does not include the edge Threat Prevention, and the Security Edition package that does include it.
Heather Paunet, Senior Vice President of Product and Marketing at Untangle
“The Basic version is for customers who want a very low-cost connectivity option,” Paunet said. “We have already seen orders for both packages. The Basic version provides the security from the network as part of a global policy, connecting to the next-gen firewall and then applying all the security policies like Web filter and virus blocker in the same way. It reflects the fact that a lot of SMBs still allocate less than $1000 a year to security.”
The other new option created by the Threat Prevention option is a choice in deployment options when setting up branch offices. Security can be either assessed as before, with branch offices connected to the corporate network, or done at the network edge.
“Adding in that option to have a security component at the branch office is the new piece there,” Paunet indicated. “Before, all the security components were at the security gateway.”
Paunet said that among SMBs, it remains largely a perception thing on whether they want edge security.
“The advantage is that if you send traffic to a network gateway, the perception is it will take time,” she stated. “Having the flexibility to do it at the edge will be a timesaver. 5-10 years ago, it wasn’t deemed possible to put a security gateway in the cloud. You can do that now, but some still prefer to choose to send some traffic to the gateway but send some right from the edge. Our router now gives you that flexibility.”
