MetTel announced the launch of its global cloud network designed to extend its secure networking services purpose-built for the Secure Access Service Edge (SASE).  MetTel will make the enterprise transition to SASE easy by delivering its MetTel SASE solutions through the same fully managed service to which its clients are accustomed.

MetTel will launch its SASE portfolio with its Zero-Trust Network Access (ZTNA) offering in addition to its existing Software Defined Wide Area Network (SD-WAN) and Firewall as a Service (FWaaS).  MetTel's ZTNA solution provides secure remote access to an organization's applications, data, and services based on clearly defined access control policies. It is an evolutionary step beyond virtual private networks (VPNs) in that ZTNA provides access only to services and applications an individual has been explicitly granted versus the broad network access VPNs afford.  This stricter user validation becomes more valuable as more remote workers join the network and is the basis for any organization looking to adopt a Zero-Trust security framework.

"MetTel is poised to deliver fully managed SASE services through our U.S. and global cloud centers on demand for enterprise clients, providing benefits such as AI-based threat correlation without the complexity," said Ed Fox, Chief Technology Officer of MetTel.   "There are no easy answers to SASE today because no single technology vendor does it all well.  A multi-vendor approach lets organizations get the best technology at a pace and timing that makes sense for them, and MetTel is here to make sure all of the pieces come together exactly as they are needed without abandoning existing investments - the most logical choice for many organizations."  

MetTel has engineered some of the largest commercial implementations of SD-WAN in North America, each connecting thousands of locations with high performance and scalable bandwidth in many different verticals such as retail, automotive, waste management and including the largest jewelry retailer in the world.   A recognized leader in the Gartner Magic Quadrant for Managed Network Services, MetTel is well-positioned for success as SD-WAN is an essential component of SASE.

Similarly, MetTel is guarding the perimeter of the network with implementations of FWaaS, including many of its SD-WAN customers.  One such client is a distributed network of family-focused medical facilities spread across the southwestern U.S.  MetTel is also providing SD-WAN, FWaaS and ZTNA for a national healthcare provider that has entrusted MetTel to implement ZTNA for greater security at the individual user level.  Healthcare organizations are tasked with protecting the privacy of patients by HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) regulations and ZTNA is being used as an effective method of securing patient data by requiring user authentication at every turn.

Many organizations perceive the need to quickly move to a SASE architecture but are not sure how best to implement it.  Gartner, which defined the SASE concept, projects that by 2024 at least 40 percent of all enterprises will have explicit strategies to adopt SASE.   In addition, the global SASE market is expected to reach a compound annual growth rate of 10.8 percent by 2026, according to Market Insight Reports.  

MetTel finds many organizations are not aware that SASE resources perform best when IT delivery systems are in close proximity to the "edge" where end-users reside.  Building a global network offers accessibility and scalability to meet overall market and individual enterprise demand for surges in resources during times of need.  There are also data privacy laws in several nations that require voice or data generated in-country remain local and not transit international IT facilities.

With these client needs in mind, today MetTel is announcing a major expansion of its network infrastructure with new, cloud-based communication delivery centers worldwide.  The first wave of international centers being installed in 2021 include: Montreal, Toronto, Calgary, Mexico City, London, Madrid, Mumbai, Singapore, Tokyo and Sydney with further expansion expected in 2022.  This build out is in addition to MetTel's ubiquitous network of physical and virtual data centers around the US including Ashburn, VA; Atlanta, GA; Denver, CO; Dallas, TX; Santa Clara and San Jose, CA; Seattle, WA; New York City and Chicago, IL.

This full complement of cloud delivery centers, along with a healthy list of preferred ecosystem partners places MetTel in a position to provide a wide array of high-performance, secure network as a service offerings building upon current products with additional SASE features, the main components of which are: 

• Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA)
• Software Defined - Wide Area Network (SD-WAN)
• Firewall as a Service (FWaaS)
• Secure Web Gateway (SWG)
• Cloud Access Security Broker (CASB)
  

In addition to these SASE core elements, there are a number of supporting services that are required for organizations to be successful and meet the needs of their business.  Additional network services include Network as a Service, WAN optimization, bandwidth aggregation, advanced networking services.   Additional future integrated security services will include: Remote Browser Isolation (RBI), Data Loss Prevention (DLP), DDoS, DNS protection and AI threat detection.

Providing the network as a service, as MetTel does, requires the most responsive and real-time capabilities with little margin for error -- any mistakes are immediately and transparently seen in the network world.  MetTel takes the same approach to SASE, extending its DNA to make resources responsive and constantly available, using leading technology providers with best-of-breed security capabilities. Current security technology partners that contribute to MetTel's SASE stack include VMware, Forcepoint, Fortinet and several others currently under evaluation in MetTel Labs.  Another point of emphasis for MetTel will be providing an overarching AI-guided threat detection service that aggregates malicious activity gathered from the network into actionable tasks.

MetTel sees clear benefits for enterprises by providing the best in secure networking in the form of SASE: 

• Security embedded into high performance networking
• Unified threat portal to view all threats and response actions
• Reduction in complexity and costs through vendor consolidation
• Increasing situational awareness through a single threat portal
• Moving to the latest generation of protections designed fortheedge
• Simplifying vendor management, while improving compliance
• Preventing engineering bloat, while optimizing capabilities
• Reducing latency and improving user experience by executing at the edge
• Enabling new digital business scenarios through greater flexibility and resiliency