F5 jumps onto the cloud bandwagon, sets sights on NZ
F5 Networks has launched Silverline, a cloud-based network security offering, with F5 Silverline DDoS (distributed denial of service) the first protection offering launched on the platform. The company says they have already had a lot of interest in the New Zealand market.
Silverline expands F5 Network's Systhesis architecture and enables application services within customers' deployment model either on-premises and/or as-a-service.
Hybrid services delivery and security intelligence licensing options are in greater demand as companies are more interested in providing programmable application delivery capabilities via physical and virtual infrastructures, to support software defined application services and other software-defined initiatives, says F5.
Kuna Nallappan, F5 Networks regional director, says, "We realised there was a major move by customers to the cloud. In New Zealand it's a big talking point, and lots of applications are now in the cloud."
Nallappan says as a lot of applications are becoming cloud based customers want their on-premise solutions to extend to the cloud, and need more comprehensive protection.
DDoS was the biggest demand from customers, which is why it is the first release on the Silverline platform, he says.
As a hybrid solution, DDoS works in the cloud as well as on-premise, providing double layered protection. Attack traffic can be inspected, monitored and stopped in the cloud, while also allowing a service to be running in the cloud the whole time.
Nallappan says the F5 solution is differentiated as it is a combination of on-premise and off-premise.
"This combination is vital so customers can have double layered protection," he says. With trends such as mobility on the rise, enterprises are in need of security solutions that provide not just one point of protection but many points along the way - in the cloud, enterprise and the workplace.
Nallappan says the F5 DDoS solution is also special as it protects against volumetric and intensive threats, meaning it provides protection against a vast amount of threats, as well as few more targeted threats.
"There are not many players offering such a credible service with the type of experience we have," says Nallappan.
This product will be available as an on-going subscription service. Nallappan says a lot of customers like to have subscription services and are turning to as-a-service offerings, and F5 Networks plan to cater to this trend.
He says F5 Networks are already seeing a lot of interest, and are in discussions with major Australian and New Zealand organisations. "Australia and New Zealand is a big focus for us, we see huge potential here," he says, adding that New Zealand is an innovative market that is ready to try emerging technologies.
In New Zealand the interest surrounding Telecom as a Service, particularly in the government, will drive uptake of the product, Nallappan says.
He says banking and financial institutions will be the primary customers, although F5 Networks also plans to partner with service providers who want to run their solutions through Silverline.
For instance, customers who have a lot of eCommerce or rely heavily on their online presence as it provides real-time solutions and bandwidth won't be blocked when there is a large attack.
