Managed services providers (MSP) who are looking to establish a security-as-a-service practice for the SMB market can now get an all-in-one network security solution from San Jose, Calif.-based Untangle.
Untangle is a network security vendor that has been offering security products since 2003 and its flagship solution is a unified threat management offering called NG Firewall. The company is positioning itself in the small-to-mid-size business (SMB) market and has designed its product portfolio for not just small businesses, but also home offices, non-profit organizations, the education sector as well as government offices.
Chris Peluso, director of channel and strategic partnerships for Untangle, told EChannelNews that SMBs are even more susceptible to ransomware, malware, phishing and spam attacks as big businesses.
“Often times they lack the expertise of a large enterprise. This is why SMBs need MSPs and solution providers because they have the knowledge and the resources to help secure their networks,” Peluso said.
According to Verizon’s 2017 Data Breach Investigations Report, ransomware attacks rose by 50 per cent compared to the previous year and the average amount paid by victims rose to $1,077. That is a whopping increase of 266 per cent from last year.
Peluso added that SMB are today dealing with new threats from Internet of Things and the Bring Your Own Device trend. “And, SMBs do not always have the IT budget to protect all of their devices.”
Untangle has a strategy to be a one stop shop for network security for MSPs from the network layer to the app layer, while providing them tools for effectively managing customers no matter where they are located.
The company is also upping its game with MPSs and solution providers in the channel by introducing a cloud-based Command Center for threat intelligence that the channel can use. NG Firewall integrates with Command Center services such as ScoutIQ and a centralized management tool for MSPs to help manage customer deployments.
The channel is a key element to Untangle’s growth, Peluso said. “MSPs and solution providers are still the trusted business advisors in the market. We are looking for more MSPs and our solutions fit into their style of how they are managing customer infrastructure. We think Command Center and the NG Firewall platform provides MSPs a way to add security-as-a-service to their portfolio,” he said.
