A Cloud-Centric and Scalable Security and Networking Solution to Protect Users, Devices, and Edges.
With the rise of the hybrid workforce, organisations have had to secure their employees who access the network and applications from on-site and off-site. This work-from-anywhere (WFA) shift has significantly expanded the attack surface, encompassing home offices and mobile workers, thereby increasing the complexity of network, application, and resource security.
Securing this hybrid workforce environment presents a unique challenge as the changes have occurred organically rather than through a carefully planned strategy. The rapid proliferation of new network edges and the inclusion of WFA employees, often implemented as independent projects, have created vulnerabilities that cybercriminals eagerly exploit. On top of this, the trend has also led to organisations experiencing poor user, device, and application visibility, resulting in more threats and security gaps.
A secure access service edge (SASE) architecture helps address these exploits by providing secure access and high-performance connectivity to users in branches large and small or in any remote location. However, many SASE solutions only solve part of the problem.
Universal SASE, built on the Fortinet single-vendor approach, delivers a comprehensive SASE solution by integrating software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN) with a cloud-delivered security service edge (SSE) to extend the convergence of networking and security from the network edge to remote users, together with a unified management, unified agent, and digital experience monitoring (DEM).
Fortinet Universal SASE includes a high-performance and scalable cloud network with 100+ locations globally, enabling broad coverage and scalability for all our customers, regional and global. Universal SASE provides the utmost security, whether users access the web, corporate applications, or Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) applications.
As a single-vendor SASE solution, Universal SASE is managed by Fortinet FortiManager, providing unmatched visibility, management, and consistent security policies across on-premises and remote users. Its SSE component, FortiSASE, offers easier user onboarding and the industry’s most flexible tiered user-based licensing model. This allows organisations to transition from CapEx to OpEx business models to keep the costs of today's highly dynamic networks and infrastructures predictable.
Universal SASE supports five critical use cases:
Rather than providing an isolated, cloud-only approach, Universal SASE offers services built into the Fortinet Security Fabric. By extending and using the power of FortiOS, the Fortinet Security Fabric provides broad visibility, granular control, and consistent, proactive protection everywhere.
These technologies, powered by a single FortiOS operating system, provide an integrated, cloud-centric SASE solution that protects users, applications, and endpoint devices while seamlessly interoperating with the rest of the distributed network. This effortless end-to-end approach to converging networking and security enables the sort of adaptive strategy organisations require in today's rapidly evolving digital environment.