GTT promises seamless and integrated security on global Tier 1 network thanks to Prisma Access
GTT Communications announced this week that it’s working with Palo Alto Networks to integrate Prisma Access for its managed Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) offering. The new platform combines comprehensive security into a single cloud platform, according to GTT.
“The integrated networking and security functions reduce complexity, increase centralized control and efficiency, improve network performance and latency and enable businesses to adopt a zero-trust network access approach that mitigates security vulnerabilities that can result from a work-from-anywhere model,” said GTT in a statement.
Prisma Access, originally called GlobalProtect cloud service, is a Palo Alto cloud-based managed security offering. It helps businesses communicate securely with remote networks and users deployed globally. It uses an internal service infrastructure to secure network communications via subnets and dynamic routing.
“The elasticity of the cloud scales as demand shifts and traffic patterns change. The cloud service facilitates next-generation security deployment to remote networks and mobile users by leveraging a cloud-based security infrastructure managed by Palo Alto Networks. The security processing nodes deployed within the service natively inspect all traffic in order to identify applications, threats and content. Prisma Access provides visibility into the use of SaaS applications and the ability to control which SaaS applications are available to your users,” said Palo Alto Networks.
SASE trends in enterprise network security
As an emerging trend in enterprise network security, SASE’s actual definition is nebulous. There isn’t a defined standard to adhere to. But in broad strokes, SASE combines Software Defined-Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) technology with additional layers of cloud-based security. Zero-trust access, Secure Web Gateways (SWGs), firewalls and other security elements feature prominently.
Market research firm Gartner first defined SASE in 2019. Gartner sees a big uptick in this emerging market in the short term. According to their 2021 Strategic Roadmap for SASE Convergence, corporate digitalization strategies have been accelerated during the pandemic. This requires more businesses to adopt SASE strategies. Gartner predicts that by 2025, 60% of enterprises will have explicit timelines and strategies in place for SASE adoption. That’s up from 10% in 2020.
In October, VMware announced its Edge portfolio to help businesses run, manage and better secure apps in near and far edge locations and multi-cloud environments and it includes an SASE component.
The product line comprises VMware Edge Compute Stack, an integrated virtual machine and container-based stack in different configurations for Standard, Advanced and Enterprise customers. VMWare SASE is VMware’s cloud security service that incorporates SD-WAN and a global network of Points of Presences (PoPs).
