Sheldon Anthony IO

Cloud computing has become a key driver for digital transformation and growth for today’s businesses, enabling them to deliver applications and services to customers with the speed and scalability that only the cloud can provide. However, protecting the cloud also means securing an increasingly large and complex attack surface that ranges from cloud workloads to virtual servers and other technologies that underpin the cloud environment. Cloud workload protection platforms are continuously monitoring for, and removing threats from cloud workloads and containers, offering unified security across multiple cloud providers. According to Future Market Insights, the cloud workload protection market was valued at USD 2,918.0 million in 2021 and is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 22.1% during the forecast period, which will reach the market value of USD 25,868.9 million by 2032.^[1] Businesses are increasingly dependent on cloud technology, but this comes with risks. Without proper protection against cyber threats, data breaches, and regulatory penalties, companies are putting themselves in danger. It's essential to have a robust cloud workload protection platform solution to safeguard against these threats and ensure the safety of sensitive data.

In the high-stakes game of cloud security, every business owner is a card player, dealing with sensitive data and vulnerable systems. Without a cloud workload protection platform as their ace in the hole, they're forced to bluff their way through, hoping against hope they won't get caught with a bad hand. The stakes are high: a single data breach or malware infection can cripple operations, erode customer trust, and sink reputations. Yet, for many businesses, the complexities and costs of traditional security solutions feel like an all-in bet, leaving them exposed and vulnerable in the ever-evolving threat landscape. According to Statista, in 2023, the main challenge in securing multi-cloud environments was having the right skills to deploy and manage a complete solution across all cloud environments.^[2] At the same time, more than half of respondents worldwide stated that their company struggled to ensure data protection and privacy for each environment. To embrace the cloud's agility and efficiency, while gambling on the hope that their current patchwork of defenses will hold. It's a gamble no business owner should have to take.

BBT.live helps service providers of all sizes meet their customers’ connectivity needs. Its next generation SD-WAN/SASE as a Service platform, BeBroadband, drives efficiency and lowers costs by integrating all essential capabilities into a single fully integrated suite that’s easy to deploy and operate. BBT.live enables simple, secure and reliable deployments with BeBroadband, its SD-WAN and Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) solution. BeBroadband connects customers’ branch and headquarters locations across a variety of network paths, including MPLS, cellular, satellite, broadband and internet. To ensure maximum uptime for its customers, and help them maintain regulatory compliance, BBT.live needed a strategic partner that could provide secure cloud connectivity and runtime protection for its customers’ connected devices. “Everyone knows that connectivity without security is nothing,” said Moshe Levinson, Co-Founder and CEO of BBT.live. “Service providers need to ensure that their connectivity service offerings are secured against both known and zero-day threats. That meant we had to find a way to secure our BeBroadband edge device and the data traffic flowing through it.” The high cost and complexity associated with network-based solutions, and their inability to defend against attacks on memory or system resources, prompted Levinson to search for a flexible cloud-based solution. After considering numerous security vendors, Levinson and his colleagues decided to partner with Check Point. “We looked at many open-source software packages to integrate,” said Erez Zelikovitz, Chief ProductOfficer, BBT.live. “We chose Check Point Quantum IoT Protect Nano Agent because we could embed industry leading IoT threat prevention and security into our edge device. The ease of integration and support from Check Point made it possible.” The solution protects devices from known and zero-day threats and helps BBT.live stay compliant with international data protection regulations — without slowing down business operations. “What we really like about Check Point IoT Protect Nano Agent is that it’s lightweight,” said David Hay, chief science officer, BBT. live and associate professor at the School of Computer Science and Engineering at Hebrew University. “It monitors all software system calls, memory references and network activities without impacting performance or consuming many CPU resources.” To safeguard applications and workflows within cloud environments, BBT.live also made Check Point CloudGuard Network Security part of its BeBroadband solution. Check Point CloudGuard, a security gateway running within a virtual machine (VM), is deployed to the virtualized network, protecting the perimeter and stopping threat actors from moving laterally between applications inside the datacenter. With protection from even the most sophisticated attacks, BeBroadband customers can quickly and securely extend applications and workflows to cloud environments. Thanks to Check Point’s easily-integrated, industry-leading security tools, BBT.live is now better equipped than ever to help service providers reduce operating costs, accelerate deployments and unlock new revenue streams. BBT.live’s customers no longer need to integrate multiple solutions to optimize WAN traffic and protect devices and applications from advanced threats. This results in lower customer acquisition costs for service providers, as they can quickly and easily implement a solution with minimal overhead. “One customer said he needed optimization with security, and BeBroadband was like magic for him,” said Levinson.” Not only was his technical problem solved, the solution also enabled him to dramatically shorten his sales cycle with customers.” BBT.live continues to move its product development forward — and bring in new business — with security in mind. “A huge benefit of the Check Point collaboration for us is that we increased our revenue,” said Levinson. “Check Point is a respected brand name, and incorporating this Check Point security mechanism into our solution made it very easy to sell.” In light of the success they’ve already had since partnering with Check Point, Levinson and his colleagues plan to integrate other Check Point products into their solution to help them keep pace with their customers’ evolving business and security needs.^[3] 

Multi-cloud strategies are surging in popularity, with demand projected to almost double within the next decade and this rise is driven by their ability to balance security and cost-effectiveness in hybrid cloud environments. Organizations embracing this approach gain access to cloud virtual machines (VMs) for increased flexibility, low latency for improved user experience, and the ability to configure workloads for optimal performance. This adaptability enhances return on investment (ROI) while allowing organizations to prioritize robust security for sensitive data and applications. To protect their cloud workloads from a variety of cyber threats, such as ransomware, data breaches, denial-of-service attacks, and malicious insiders businesses are implementing cloud workload protection platforms (CWPPs), which are security solutions that monitor, detect, and remove threats from the cloud workloads and containers, across multiple cloud providers. CWPPs provide consistent visibility and control over cloud environments, ensuring compliance with security policies and standards.

Forward-thinking organizations are revolutionizing their security posture by automating threat responses across vast networks. Powerful AI tools gather data, pinpoint threats with precision, minimize false alarms, and streamline investigations, enabling their security teams to react swiftly and decisively. Seeking to optimize their security operations, forward-thinking organizations are embedding governance rules into their cloud workload protection platforms. These rules guide automated responses, leading to a well-managed ticketing system that facilitates faster and more efficient issue handling. In today's cloud-powered world, users access data from a multitude of devices. This makes security awareness and behavior change more crucial than ever. Equip your teams with knowledge of emerging threats, relevant compliance standards, and updated security protocols. This empowers them to follow endpoint security practices, making network access control and threat monitoring smoother and more efficient for your security professionals.