Cyber security on tap - new opportunity for service providers

WASHINGTON, Nov. 19, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Cloud Network Defense™ (CND), launched today by network security specialist Wedge Networks, is a radical new means to deliver high levels of cyber security – on demand and closely tailored to business or individual security needs. CND presents an exciting opportunity for service providers to grow their portfolio and generate sustainable added revenue.

"Cloud Network Defense™ will transform the way security is delivered" says Dr Hongwen Zhang, President and CEO of Wedge Networks. "It is a cloud based software platform leveraging SDN and NFV technology to perform what we call Elastic Security Services Orchestration™. Our software makes it easy for service providers to offer embedded security as a scalable, high performance service for cloud connected networks. Web, email and mobile security policy can now be unified and optimized across all network traffic and all devices, anytime, anywhere".

Cloud Network Defense™ is a radical departure from current security technologies that rely on proprietary hardware or require security providers to direct traffic to third party infrastructure for inspection – causing delays and adding latency. CND integrates Deep Content Inspection (DCI) and Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) with advanced software to direct and load-balance computing resources – including spawning off and 'shrinking' instances, which normally executes in hardware. The result is comprehensive, scalable and customizable real time security – without requiring traffic to leave the network. The Wedge approach takes advantage of cloud computing architecture that offers scalability, elasticity (dynamic reallocation per demand), ubiquitous availability, and high capacity for the cloud centric networks of today and into the future.

"Imagine being able to phone your service provider call center and ask for whatever security services you might need – anti-malware, anti-spam, parental control, whatever" adds Steve Chappell EVP Sales & Marketing & COO. "The call center enables the service on the spot, and the fee appears on your next bill. It's a terrific service for business or the individual user, and an exceptional opportunity for the provider to increase revenue and enhance customer loyalty."

"Small and medium size businesses face the same cyber threats as their enterprise peers, yet they have stiffer budget constraints for managed security services to assist in defending attacks from cyber miscreants," according to Frank Dickson, Research Director with Frost & Sullivan,  "Wedge Networks Cloud Network Defense empowers managed security service providers to deliver robust security services to small and medium size business by leveraging a scalable and effective technology platform, moving away from a security professional staff centric approach. As a result, managed security service providers can profitably deliver effective and reliable managed security services needed by small and medium businesses."

Fran Howarth, Senior Analyst, Bloor Research also comments on the benefits the new technology from Wedge Networks will have for service providers: "This new Cloud Network Defense™ will appeal to the many service providers that have been struggling to differentiate their offerings and face high rates of customer churn. It is the sort of service that their customers will appreciate, allowing them to achieve secure connectivity without having to rely on unsecured networks."

Wedge, as security experts for the MEF, sees Cloud Network Defense™ as a significant milestone on the path towards the forum's Third Network vision of agile, assured and orchestrated services. Agility means that security measures must be rapidly and easily provisioned – the more painful the provision the greater risk of security being sidelined. Assurance will mean that once one has signed up for a certain level and type of security, that same service should be provided whenever and wherever the user connects. Orchestration of the security policy and implementation will ultimately ensure that this service and its management remains consistent across any number of intervening network segments.

About Wedge

Wedge NetworksTM is transforming the way security is delivered. Powered by the innovative WedgeOSTM, Wedge Networks' Cloud Network DefenseTM platform is designed to combat the shifting threat landscape associated with cloud, mobility, Internet of Things and consumerization of IT. By embedding security within the network as an elastic, scalable service, it is the only cloud security solution to perform high-performance content inspection without requiring traffic to leave the network. The Wedge PlatformTM is deployed globally, delivering security protection for tens of millions of users in Fortune 500 companies, government agencies, internet services providers, and across all industry verticals. Wedge NetworksTM is headquartered in Calgary, Canada and has international offices in Dallas, USA; Beijing, China; and Manama, Bahrain.

SOURCE Wedge Networks