SASE brings network and security together, enabling IT teams to control all traffic at the ever-shifting logical edge of their networks. Allows them to deliver enterprise-grade applications regardless of where the users are.
However, not all SASE solutions are created equal. Learn how to choose the best one for your business.
Choose a Vendor with a Global Reach
Choosing the right SASE solution for Chinese enterprises is crucial for business protection. The best SASE solutions integrate networking and security capabilities into a single solution with a global network of points of presence.
A true SASE solution combines SD-WAN, secure web gateway (SWG), CASB, and zero trust network access (ZTNA) into a unified service. It provides consistent protection across all network edges and ensures faster performance. It also simplifies management and reduces cost and complexity. It enables agility and scalability to meet the demands of digital business.
Focus on Security
As digital businesses demand greater scalability and security, they want to integrate their networking and security solutions. This is where SASE comes in.
SASE is network-based security that allows applications to be routed where they need to go while enforcing secure access controls and providing visibility into the user and device context. It's also more efficient than legacy hub-and-spoke architectures, as traffic is implemented close to the users.
SASE can also reduce costs by leveraging Internet exchanges and optimizing connections to cloud services to ensure low latency. It can be delivered by single-vendor SASE providers, which combine SD-WAN with security functionality into a seamless platform.
Optimize Network Performance
The key to meeting digital business demands is a hybrid network that combines security and connectivity. This approach provides scalability, agility, and reduced complexity.
Unlike traditional hub-and-spoke architectures, SASE delivers secure direct access to applications from the cloud and mobile users at the edge of your network. This model is based on identity, reducing network attack surfaces, and improving security.
A SASE solution can provide a single control point for network and security functions with global reach and easy integration. A converged SASE solution with SD-WAN offers seamless deployment and simplified management.
Scale Your Network
SASE combines networking and security functions traditionally delivered as point products into a unified solution. It reduces costs and IT complexity, enables a least-privileged model, ensures consistent policy enforcement, and has a seamless user experience.
The centralized, cloud-based approach to SASE also lowers costs by shifting up-front capital investments to monthly subscription fees and delegating hardware maintenance to the vendor. Consequently, this helps to minimize IT staff time spent on deployments, upgrades, and maintenance. Moreover, it reduces the number of vendors that IT has to manage and improves security by pushing security close to users.
Invest in Cloud Technology
As a cloud-delivered solution, SASE provides cost efficiency and scalability. It shifts up-front capital costs to monthly subscription fees and reduces the number of networking and security appliances and vendors companies need to manage.
SASE is also a great way to break down networking and security team siloes. This is because SASE can provide a single platform with common services, unified policies, and consistent availability, improving IT team productivity.
It offers a zero-trust approach to network security that validates user identity and device posture before granting access to applications. It will help ensure that data is protected, regardless of where it is accessed.
Focus on Data Center Security
As companies move to cloud-native environments, they need a way to connect to the applications they depend on securely. This is where SASE comes in. SASE combines networking and security capabilities into a single platform to give users dynamic access based on context.
This platform is centered on Zero Trust principles, where security services are provided close to the user. SASE considers multiple contextual factors like identity, location, device posture, and risk/trust assessment to ensure that security policies are applied consistently. It helps to mitigate risks from man-in-the-middle attacks, spoofing, and malicious traffic.
Make the Most of SD-WAN
With the rise of remote work, it's important to have a network that can support employees wherever they are. SASE provides that by combining connectivity with security solutions like firewalls, CASBs, and secure web gateways.
SASE allows businesses to converge their networking and security capabilities, reducing costs and IT complexity while improving operational efficiency. It also will enable organizations to achieve a least-privileged model and consistent policy enforcement while providing a seamless user experience.
A unified SASE solution, SD-WAN Secure solution, is a great option for simplifying management and accelerating the SASE adoption process. The platform combines networking and security functions into one cloud-delivered architecture, making it easier to scale.
Focus on Endpoint Security
A traditional perimeter-based approach no longer provides the level of security digital organizations need. With traffic shifting from the data center to edge locations and users, enterprises require a new solution for secure access that addresses those endpoints.
This is why SASE is so important. It allows you to deliver security services closer to the user, eliminating the attack surface and reducing risk. In addition, it eliminates the need for multiple tools and vendors, making it easier to break down networking and security team siloes. It also supports zero trust network access (ZTNA) for remote and distributed users.
Focus on Network Monitoring
The best SASE solutions are bundled with multi-enterprise-grade security features such as secure web gateway (SWG), ZTNA, DNS security, and anti-phishing. These capabilities prevent attacks and threats that otherwise compromise data integrity, applications, and services.
Your network's health depends on real-time network monitoring tools. These tools act as your network's diligent observers and fitness trainers, keeping tabs on performance and speed. These tools also ensure compliance with regulations and internal policies. It helps protect your data and accelerate digital transformation for greater business value.
Focus on Network Optimization
With bandwidth demands and user Quality of Experience (QoE) increasing, network capacity is at a premium. SASE enables enterprises to reduce costs and improve performance by replacing MPLS with high-capacity Internet links.
IT leaders can also use SASE to secure WAN and cloud connections with clientless remote access for users that delivers fast zero-trust performance. The result is improved IT agility, efficiency, and security.
IT teams should look for a single-vendor SASE solution to ensure seamless integration and a single pane of glass. Otherwise, they risk exposing their infrastructure to a single point of failure or exposure.
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