Secure SD-WAN with Fortinet: The Future of Firewall Technology

Introduction

In this era of highly interconnected world and emergence of remote work models, along with organizations aggressively following cloud first strategies traditional WAN architectures are proving to be incomplete. The networks are changing, endpoints are moving out beyond the corporate perimeter and it is obvious that a strong security solution is a must to have, than ever before. With the explosion of distributed and remote workforces, Secure SD-WAN (Software-Defined Wide Area Network) is changing the game for Enterprises trying to manage their networks. One of the key players in this transformation is Fortinet, a company that delivers top-of-the-line cybersecurity solutions. With ground-breaking firewall technology, Fortinet is transforming secure SD-WAN deployment for continuous connectivity with better security. Read on for a look at advanced SD-WAN with a focus on Fortinet’s revolutionary save-the-day offering, and why the fleet should be recognized as prime candidate for provisioning needle-shifting consolidation in this genre.

Secure SD-WAN Overview

Secure SD-WAN is a flexible, economical way to integrate the traditional WAN with contemporary, secure connectivity. This allows organizations to streamline their nightly IT networks, remove the errors that degrade performance, and bolster security postures. SD-WAN abstracts network hardware from software control to allow businesses to direct traffic across multiple WAN connections without compromising the performance, security or the agility of the enterprise.

Some of the characteristics to secure SD-WAN are:

• Application Awareness: Discerns and assigns traffic based on the needs of a particular application to optimize performance.
• Centralized Management: Provides one location for monitoring and configuring network settings in a disparate set of locations.

Security is another benefit – Security can be built at every network point to draw a curtain and provide secure internet access, communications. Cost Efficiency: Eliminating MPLS Circuits with Cheap Broadband Connections. In this scenario, enterprises need secure and reliable SD-WAN solutions for a distributed edge and hybrid work which can grow whenever required.

Fortinet’s Innovations

Having been at the forefront of cybersecurity and network management, Fortinet is already playing a massive leading role in secure SD-WAN. Their innovations in the field of firewall technology are key to enabling secure SD-WAN deployments. Key advancements include:

• Internal Security Fabric: Fortinet’s Security Fabric integrates SD-WAN with an organization’s existing security infrastructure creating a unified security posture across all endpoints. This means that threats can be visualized in real time – as well as respond to automatically.
• Next-Generation Firewalls (NGFWs): Fortinet has integrated SD-WAN functionality into its NGFW product line, delivering secure connectivity with optimal performance and efficiency in time for customers to include these capabilities when enterprise investments are refreshed. Their NGFWs deliver not just deep packet inspection, SSL inspection, and application control necessary to secure distributed environments so that applications like Office 365 can be the primary user interface for employees; they also provide a rich set of complementary security capabilities that enterprises require.
• AI-Powered Threat Intelligence: Utilizing artificial intelligence and machine learning, Fortinet offers predictive threat identification to detect and prevent security threats that could take place in the future. This ability proves vital to the needs of taming SD-WAN environments that are constantly changing and require immediate alerting and response.
• Scalable and Flexible Architecture: The solution is scalable from small businesses to large enterprises. This is especially useful for companies who rent Fortinet’s equipment, because it allows them to scale up operations without a large capital expenditure.
• Centralized Orchestration with FortiManager: It features centrally managed control point (FortiManager) with easy to use interfaces for simplifying the monitoring and management of your security policy in distributed locations. This orchestration model is suitable for businesses when they have a deployment in place or need to roll out SD-WAN across various branches efficiently.

Benefits for Remote Workforces

A whole new meaning to network security strategies. Lately, there has been increased effort in developing working from home methods of work since many organizations have had to send employees with laptops out safe from the known hole network. In light of that, Fortinet’s secure SD-WAN is particularly well-suited to help you support remote workforces with:

• Security Consideration – As in remote deployment environment, security attacks are in abundance. The integrated security of Fortinet validates that the endpoints which enter and exit on the network are secured, thereby protecting business-critical data from any cyber threat.
• Reliable Connectivity: Fortinet solutions deliver preferred network paths and performance even in diverse networking environments so that remote employees can connect seamlessly to the resources they need.
• Simplified Management: Centralized management tools allow IT teams to manage security and network performance with ease even at remote sites, from a single pane of glass.
• Cost-Effective Scalability: Businesses can scale their secure SD-WAN deployments on a pay-as-you-go basis, which is far more convenient and cost-effective. The fast flexibility and no need for large hardware purchases make this option appealing for teams that need to grow rapidly or frequently work from remote locations.
• Accelerated Deployment: The plug-and-play setup of Fortinet’s SD-WAN solutions enable organisations to rapidly deploy secure remote networks which is a key requirement for business productivity and operational continuity.
• Improved User Experience: In addition, Fortinet’s integrated next-generation firewall has proven application quality of experience based on the ability to prioritize the most critical traffic first over an optimum WAN path.

Conclusion

As businesses formally confront ongoing remote work trends, secure SD-WAN offerings will be a linchpin in efforts to maintain network performance and security. Bringing firewall technology into the fold, Fortinet is now pushing SD-WAN capabilities to new heights that offer businesses Security, Reliability and Flexibility all in one. Since renting out the advanced firewalls of Fortinet, businesses can receive scalable and less CAPEX solutions which mean they can operate their networks at the highest efficiency to meet the challenges of the digital age. The imperative for businesses is to keep pace with the changing shifts in cybersecurity and stay ahead of them as we look toward the future.