Check Point this week officially entered the single-vendor secure access service edge (SASE) market as it launched Quantum SASE. The vendor boasted the hybrid SASE solution offers two times faster internet security compared to its competitors.
Quantum SASE consolidates technologies from its Harmony Connect security service edge (SSE), recent acquisitions such as Perimeter 81 and Atmosec, as well as Check Point’s recently launched SD-WAN solution.
Just last month, Check Point enhanced its SSE offerings with the acquisition of SSE startup Perimeter 81. Following that, the security vendor announced the acquisition of Atmosec, a startup specializing in detecting and disconnecting malicious software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications and rectifying SaaS misconfigurations.
Additionally, the vendor launched its SD-WAN solution earlier in February. The Quantum SD-WAN integrates with the vendor’s artificial intelligence (AI)-powered threat prevention capabilities, aiming for safer and smoother internet and network connectivity.
These moves laid the groundwork for Check Point to offer a unified SASE platform. It claims its single-vendor SASE offers a consolidated console for the entire on-premises and cloud firewall. Meanwhile, Check Point is in the process of integrating Perimeter 81 and Atmosec into its Infinity portal, which is expected to be available within a couple of months, Amit Bareket, VP of security service edge at Check Point Software Technologies, told SDxCentral.
Gartner in August listed the vendor as one of the honorable mentions in its first-ever Magic Quadrant for Single-Vendor SASE report, noting it didn’t meet the customer number requirement by the cutoff date.
Check Point pivots to single-vendor SASE
Check Point has been partnering with SD-WAN vendors for SASE, and one recent example is its pairing with Aryaka’s cloud-based SD-WAN service to offer managed SASE.
The launch of Quantum SASE marks Check Point’s entry into the single-vendor SASE market. “Single-vendor SASE enables a fully converged networking and network security solution that is managed from a unified management system, enables single context and consistent policies across all users and resources, and enables unified visibility and analytics,” Bareket said. “It enables enterprises to replace multiple point-solutions with a single solution [that] simplifies operations and improves security.”
In response to questions regarding Check Point’s stance on multivendor SASE after the Quantum SASE launch, Bareket confirmed that the company’s network security solutions, as part of its SSE offering, continue to be available and support third-party SD-WAN products.
Addressing internet security latency
Check Point pointed out many existing SASE providers have chosen to implement a cloud-only solution that creates a need to route all user traffic through the cloud service’s data centers, which adds latency.
To address this internet security latency issue, Check Point takes a hybrid SASE approach to combine on-device protection with cloud security capabilities. The vendor claims it achieves two times faster internet security than other solutions in the market.
“Two times faster internet security is the result of the hybrid SASE architecture [that] supports on-device protection and enables direct-to-website access without the need to route traffic through a cloud-based security service,” Bareket said. “According to tests we have conducted, we have seen this has eliminated about 50% reduction of bandwidth vs. a major competing cloud security service.”
In its Magic Quadrant for single-vendor SASE report, Gartner identified Palo Alto Networks as the only leader. Cato Networks, Versa Networks and Fortinet are listed as challengers. Cisco and Forcepoint are labeled as visionaries, and VMware and Juniper Networks as cited as niche players.
When asked about Check Point’s position in this market, Bareket said it lies within its own “unique hybrid SASE architecture with unparalleled performance as described above, integration with Check Point’s industry-leading threat protection engines, simple and fast deployment, fully converged solution with unified management.”
– SDxCentral