Kevin McLaughlin
Security vendor WatchGuard earlier this week added unified threat management (UTM) to its Firebox X Edge e-Series line of security appliances.
| Proxies inspect entire packets, opposed to just the headers, to ensure they’re appropriate protocols, which enables the appliance to block malicious code and protect against zero day threats |
Adding UTM to the e-Series line gives SMB and branch offices with up to 50 users a broad umbrella of protection against malware and emerging threats, with firewall, VPN, gateway antivirus, intrusion prevention, antispam and URL filtering features, according to Kathleen Brush, vice president of marketing at Seattle-based WatchGuard.
The Firebox X Edge e-Series detects threats with true proxies built into the appliance, which gives the product better detection capability than products that rely on filters, says Carl Mazzanti, CEO of eMazzanti Technologies, a Hoboken, N.J.-based solution provider.
“WatchGuard is one of the few vendors that offers proxies in an appliance at the sub-1000 user level,” Mazzanti added.
Proxies inspect entire packets, opposed to just the headers, to ensure they’re appropriate protocols, which enables the appliance to block malicious code and protect against zero day threats, Mazzanti said.
Features normally reserved for enterprise class UTM appliances are also included in the appliance, such as IPSec for remote access, 1:1 network address translation (NAT) and dynamic NAT, support for multiple external IP addresses, and wide area network (WAN) failover, Brush said.
WatchGuard in July was acquired by private equity firm Francisco Partners for $151 million, ending months of industry speculation that the vendor would go private.
WatchGuard is back on the right track now that it’s privately owned, Brush noted. “WatchGuard is healthier than it’s been in a long time, the new owners are in this for the long haul, and we are very positive about being private and no longer subject to the tyranny of quarterly reports,” she said.
However, one WatchGuard VAR who requested anonymity isn’t as sanguine about the company’s prospects, particularly with regard to its channel program. The source told CRN he recently lost both of his sales reps and has not heard anything from WatchGuard about how he’ll be supported in the future.
“If I don’t have outside support I’m going to have to look elsewhere,” the source said.
The WatchGuard Firebox X Edge e-Series UTM security appliance will be available December 13 and is priced starting at $480 for the wired model and $580 for the wireless version, with UTM bundles starting at $799.
New customers receive free 90-day LiveSecurity service subscriptions which include software updates, technical support, and an alert service for emerging threats.
Carl Mazzanti is Co-Founder and President of eMazzanti Technologies, Microsoft’s four time Partner of the Year and one of the premier IT consulting services for businesses throughout the New York metropolitan area and internationally. Carl and his company manage over 400 active accounts ranging from professional services firms to high-end global retailers.
eMazzanti is all about delivering powerful, efficient outsourced IT services, such as computer network management and troubleshooting, managed print, PCI DSS compliance, green computing, mobile workforce technology, information security, cloud computing, and business continuity and disaster recovery.
Carl Mazzanti is also a frequent business conference speaker and technology talk show guest and contributor at Microsoft-focused events, including frequent prominent roles at the Microsoft Inspire (Worldwide Partner Conference / WPC).
Carl, a serial Entrepreneur, gives back to the community through Entrepreneur teaching engagements at Georgetown University, the company’s ocean wildlife conservation effort, the Blue Project, and Tree Mazzanti.
