Small to mid-sized businesses (SMBs) face the same security threats as their enterprise level counterparts. Thus, modern security appliances for the mid-market have evolved to offer enterprise-caliber security. Quite often, the only difference between models is capacity. Another major change in this industry is the integration of security appliances. Firewalls and anti-virus programs have fused to become Unified Threat Management (UTM) systems– holistic solutions that offer multiple appliances within a single product.
Info-Tech Research Group has identified five vendors that SMB customers should keep top-of-mind when considering the purchase of a security solution:
- Cisco and the Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA) Series.
- Fortinet and the FortiGate Series.
- IBM and the ISS Proventia Series.
- SonicWALL and the Network Security Appliance (NSA) Series.
- WatchGuard and the Firebox Series.
These UTM vendors have been evaluated across five key criteria and grouped into four categories: Champions, Contenders, Old Guard and the Vanguard. These are not rankings. Rather, the groupings articulate how well suited each vendor and product is to servicing the target market of small and mid-sized organizations.