The partnership between Syrex and Check Point Software Technologies has gone from strength-to-strength over the past three years with the South African ICT solutions provider using it to provide local clients with a unique approach to next-generation firewalls.
“At the time, we went to the CeBIT computer expo in Germany to evaluate different vendors,” said Ralph Berndt, Director of Sales at Syrex.
“The Israeli multi-national provider of IT security solutions stood apart from the rest and were willing to negotiate with us on a level that others could not. We did not want a hardware approach to firewalls, rather opting for software that can be customised for the unique South African environment. Check Point enabled that, and the rest is history.”
One of the ways that Syrex is using Check Point technology is to offer clients a fully managed service for enterprise firewalls that is tailored to the specific needs of any business, irrespective of sector or size.
“We want to limit investment in high-availability equipment,” added Berndt.
“Instead, we build Check Point as a single instance per client domain as a service. Even better, we are using the Check Point SMB 700 series technology in South Africa to make next-generation firewalls an affordable option for small businesses as well. Syrex is focused on delivering a fully scalable solution to our clients that can grow easily as their cyber security needs change.”
With a low once-off installation and configuration cost, the Check Point solutions are sold under a Managed Service Provider agreement. This lets users pay low monthly fees for an end-to-end managed service without having to invest heavily into hardware purchases. The Syrex model includes full NGTP (Next Generation Threat Prevention) and NGTX (Next Generation Threat Extraction) licensing, support and hardware swap-outs in the event of failure.
“Syrex has seen an incredible uptake in the Check Point firewall solutions,” said Berndt.
“Our strategy of going the ‘firewall-as-a-service’ route is paying dividends and inspiring change among our clients. For those of our clients whom we provide connectivity to, we can deliver a dedicated software firewall in our secure data centre facilities, second to none. It is all about approaching cybersecurity in a different way that is completely integrated into all facets of the organisation. This ties in with our cyber resilience approach that delivers protection on all touch points of the organisation.
“Not being physically bound by hardware, makes all the difference in the price-sensitive South African market – all the features, all the security and uptime without all the cost.
“Both SMEs and enterprise customers have embraced the Syrex and Check Point partnership. Its cost-effectiveness, powerful technology and ability to scale makes Check Point the perfect fit to secure the perimeter of any organisation.
“And with Azure and Amazon Web Services data centres on the horizon in South Africa, we anticipate customers wholeheartedly adopting this innovative way of security.”
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