Next-generation firewalls offer many core benefits, such as advanced security and intelligent breach prevention, detailed network visibility, automation, integrations, and vulnerability detection. However, not all NGFWs are created equal.
Choosing the best NGFW requires careful consideration of several factors. We evaluate NGFWs in three categories: cost, performance, and security.
Cost
Fortinet’s NGFW appliances are available at various prices, from entry-level to high-end models. They offer comprehensive security features that can be customized to meet network requirements. Fortinet also provides cloud-delivered security services and centralized management to future-proof network protection.
In addition to their extensive feature set, Fortinet NGFWs are incredibly easy to use. They have a single, unified interface and provide automated visibility technology. This helps reduce the time needed to identify potential vulnerabilities and allows security staff to take preventative action before a cyber attack occurs. In addition, Fortinet NGFWs support a variety of deployment options, including virtual and physical appliances. This allows businesses to scale their NGFWs as they grow.
Moreover, Fortinet’s FortiSandbox Cloud and WildFire are the most potent threat detection engines available. They can detect zero-day and highly evasive attacks. They also include a custom hypervisor for advanced malware analysis and bare metal emulation for a more thorough inspection of files. However, Fortinet’s database of known malicious files is based entirely on hash-based information. Therefore, adding a single byte at the end of a file will change its hash and can pass the system.
Fortinet’s NGFWs can be configured to work with on-box management or a central management appliance (Panorama). It has physical and virtual machines for managing multiple firewalls from a single console. In addition, the company’s NGFW hardware is built for ease of use and automation.
Performance
In terms of performance, Fortinet vs. Palo Alto Networks NGFW has differences. Fortinet has a more substantial reputation than its competitors regarding interpreting NGFWs. Its appliances consistently outperform other firewalls in NSS evaluations and provide higher levels of security for the same price. It also boasts a simpler lineup, which may be helpful to smaller organizations. However, Palo Alto Networks is better for customers with cloud use cases and complex enterprise needs. Its appliances perform well in MITRE endpoint and MSSP testing, and its broad range of solutions offers options for any budget.
The FortiGate NGFWs can detect unsanctioned applications and other hidden threats, proactively identify the source of attacks, and stop malware at the point of infection. They also offer a full view of internal risks by detecting, segmenting, isolating, and blocking lateral movement of threats. Additionally, they can protect against advanced Layer 7 attacks. They can also stop ransomware and prevent data breaches by using threat intelligence.
The FortiGate NGFWs can be deployed as physical or virtual appliances. Moreover, they can be deployed in private or public clouds. They are scalable and secure, and using machine learning and cloud-delivered protections augments their performance. They also feature specialized acceleration hardware that offloads resource-intensive processing to reduce CPU overhead. FortiGate NGFWs also support WAN optimization, and they have a wide range of VPN options for secure remote access to the LAN.
Security
Fortinet’s NGFWs feature complete network visibility and enhanced threat protection. Its ML-powered FortiGuard services, natively integrated proxy, hyper-scale security, automation-driven network administration, and security fabric integration are some of the features that help future-proof your firm’s network. Its physical and virtual firewalls offer centralized management, cloud capabilities, and the latest PAN-OS technologies. Users report that the company’s hardware firewalls are relatively simple to set up.
The company’s hardware and software firewalls are backed by 24×7 managed security support. The company offers a variety of other cybersecurity solutions, including application security, web app scanning, WAN optimization, and managed DDoS and bot mitigation. Fortinet has a dedicated research team and continually improves its hardware and software.
Unlike competitors, their products are inexpensive and have many features, making them an excellent choice for SMBs. They include advanced IPS, WAF, and URL filtering, which protects against malware attacks. They also have several other tools, such as a content-ID system that analyzes the contents of each packet and blocks malicious activity by blocking buffer overflows and vulnerability exploits. Additionally, their NGFWs can block malicious IP addresses and URLs. The NGFWs can also detect unsanctioned applications and hidden threats. They can also prevent lateral movement across the network, manage external risks, and reduce the attack surface with micro-segmentation and macro-segmentation.
Management
Fortinet offers a complete secure access service edge (SASE) solution. It is built on a single platform with networking and security capabilities. This helps reduce the time and cost of managing the network while decreasing errors in applying networking policies. It also reduces the complexity of using security policies. It has many SASE features, including advanced threat protection and zero-trust networking. Fortinet’s SASE solutions are designed for enterprises of all sizes, from small businesses to the largest multinational corporations.
The company’s NGFW solutions are available in hardware devices ranging from the PA series to the high-end PA-7000 series with up to 100 Gbps threat prevention throughput. They are also offered as virtual devices for use in a cloud environment. This flexibility allows organizations to deploy solutions that best suit their needs without compromising protection or efficiency.
Another advantage of Fortinet NGFWs is their low power consumption. They consume one-tenth of the industry average, lower than the average for firewalls based on commercial CPU hardware. This means that they can provide the same level of performance as other firewalls but at a fraction of the cost.
Fortinet NGFWs also offer low latency. This is especially important for applications that require fast processing, such as SaaS and encrypted web traffic. The purpose-built ASIC hardware in Fortinet NGFWs is up to 20 times faster than the industry average, as shown by NSS Labs’ Security Compute Rating.
