WatchGuard’s new mid-range firewalls released: Deliver the high performance to protect against encrypted malware

WatchGuard Technologies, a global leader in network security and intelligence, multi-factor authentication (MFA), advanced endpoint protection and secure WiFi, today announced the release of its new Firebox M290, M390, M590, and M690 unified threat management appliances. An affordable yet highly capable solution for small and midsize businesses, these new firewalls deliver increased security and the fastest performance of any mid-range Firebox appliance ever, with the processing power to handle encrypted and HTTPS traffic. In addition, new expandable ports and integration with WatchGuard Cloud enable these firewalls to offer the flexibility needed to accommodate changing networking and security needs for customers and service provider partners.

“As the threat landscape evolves, performance and flexibility are both critical for organisations looking to secure their network. Our recent Q2 2021 Internet Security Report found that more than 91% of malware attacking networks is encrypted,” said Corey Nachreiner, CSO at WatchGuard. “It’s therefore essential for small and midsized organisations, or the partners servicing them, to have security solutions capable of processing encrypted traffic without negatively impacting overall performance. Our new mid-range M Series appliances deliver this capability and provide tools to simplify the deployment and ongoing management of these solutions as part of our WatchGuard Unified Security Platform.”

In yet another example of WatchGuard’s commitment to cross-platform integration, it’s easy to deploy, manage and create policies for these new Fireboxes from WatchGuard Cloud. Service providers can share configurations across multiple appliances and clients via templates and deploy appliances remotely from the cloud. A cohesive 30-day view of log data, fast log search and automated reporting greatly increases visibility. In addition, the new Firebox appliances integrate seamlessly with other solutions across the WatchGuard portfolio – including AuthPoint multi-factor authentication, WatchGuard Wi-Fi Access Points, and ThreatSync endpoint-network telemetry – to greatly simplify traditionally complex security management.

The new Firebox M290, M390, M590 and M690 appliances offer several enhancements and benefits, including:

• Faster and more powerful. Each appliance has been designed to optimise HTTPS content inspection throughput, which is essential to detect today’s malware (as shown in the most recent Internet Security Report).
• Flexible and future-proof. The ability to add module expansion bays and available expansion modules allows for customised port configuration to meet current needs while ensuring the flexibility to adapt as the network evolves. Optional POE+ ports (M590/M690 only) make it easy to connect and power other devices, like security cameras or WatchGuard’s USP Wi-Fi Access Points.
• Easy to deploy and manage. WatchGuard Cloud enables deployment, monitoring, reporting and device management from the Cloud. RapidDeploy makes deployment easy; simply power up the appliance and connect it to the internet. The rest can be taken care of remotely from any location.
• Reliable. Redundant power supplies ensure maximum availability (Firebox M590 and Firebox M690 only). “From a price/performance standpoint, these new Firebox appliances are an unbeatable solution for organisations from small businesses all the way up to mid-size enterprise data centres, with all the horsepower needed to handle the increasing threat of malware delivered via HTTPS,” said Hayden Johnston, Operations Director at WYSCOM. “The new modular expansion bays provide a range of options for meeting customer needs today and the potential to extend the life of these appliances well into the future.”

Additional resources

• WatchGuard Firebox M290 and M390 Datasheet
• WatchGuard Firebox M590 and M690 Datasheet
• Network Modularity Tech Brief