Netskope launches enhancements to cloud firewall solution

Netskope has announced key enhancements to Netskope Cloud Firewall, the firewall-as-a-service (FWaaS) component of its converged SASE platform.

New advanced security capabilities for Netskope Cloud Firewall are designed to help customers simplify operations, prevent threats, and provide consistent firewall coverage worldwide anywhere their users are located, the company states.

Businesses and governments are rapidly adopting SASE architecture to enable hybrid work, safeguard data wherever it moves, support digital transformation efforts, and realise better efficiency and return-on-investment from their technology, according to Netskope.

The Netskope converged SASE platform includes Netskope's specialist Intelligent Security Service Edge (SSE) and Borderless SD-WAN capabilities, all of which are crucial to providing the optimised access and zero trust-based security needed in a modern technology stack.

Netskope Intelligent SSE capabilities include Netskope Cloud Firewall, now with additional enhancements fit for cloud-first, SASE-ready environments.

The company states, the need for Cloud Firewall is urgent, as traditional firewalls are no longer capable of addressing the requirements for outbound security policy in hybrid work environments. More enterprises are also looking to obtain SASE capabilities from a single source to reduce vendor and tool sprawl.

Gartner notes that, by 2025, 65% of enterprises will have consolidated individual SASE components into one or two explicitly partnered SASE vendors, up from 15% in 2021.

According to the company, harnessing Netskope NewEdge infrastructure for fast delivery and smooth performance, Netskope Cloud Firewall delivers customers flexibility and choice in FWaaS deployment options.

Netskope Cloud Firewall provides consistent, cloud-delivered next-generation firewall egress protection for users and offices around the world and reduces administrative effort by applying advanced firewall policy in the cloud instead of at the edge.

With new advanced security capabilities, Netskope Cloud Firewall is designed to:

• Deliver firewall app control which enables precise enablement over traffic that is allowed, providing stronger protection and coverage when compared to standard port and protocol policies alone.
• Disrupt attacks which leverage Domain Name System (DNS) tunnels and blocks connections to malicious domains, protecting any user, device, and location with Layer 7 inspection against these threats.
• Reduce the total cost of managing outbound security policy by consolidating administration for web and non-web traffic from a SASE architecture, rather than at the network edge.
• Protect branch office networks and secures SD-WAN deployments >Works together with Netskope Next Gen SWG to protect users from cloud threats and control web activity.
• Improve security overall, preventing the dangerous compromises on coverage, application visibility, and network performance frequently seen in legacy infrastructure.

John Martin, Chief Product Officer Netskope, says, "From cap-ex headaches, to compromises on security, it's clear legacy firewalls can no longer support the demands of a cloud-first, hybrid work world.

"We built Netskope Cloud Firewall to satisfy a wider range of use cases specific to direct-to-internet environments, relieve administrative burdens, and block threats everywhere users are located. We're proud to now offer even more firewall capabilities as part of our fully integrated, converged SASE architecture."