INTRODUCTION
Untangle provides network security solutions to small and midsized businesses (SMBs) all over the world. Untangle surveyed more than 300 SMBs globally to learn more about the state of IT security at these organizations. We’ve compiled data on IT trends that include budget and resource constraints, breaches, IT infrastructure, cloud adoption, and the general state of IT.
“Despite several limitations including budgets, time and workforce constraints, SMBs are now, more than ever, reassessing their investments into IT security.”
KEY FINDINGS
Businesses continue to identify budget constraints as the main barrier when it comes to IT security.
Business footprints are increasing as offices include more remote employees and branch offices outside of a primary headquarter location.
The biggest incentive for SD-WAN implementation is secure connectivity for remote branches and ease of network management.
Small and midsize businesses are deploying more cloud-based IT infrastructures, in comparison to standard on-premises architectures.
STATE OF SMB IT SECURITY
According to the small to midsize businesses surveyed for this report, 80% note that IT security remains a top priority for their business. However, the implementation and investment in IT security solutions struggle to meet this strategic business objective, with almost 30% of SMBs investing less than $1,000 a year on IT security and 52% noting that this responsibility is distributed across other roles within the company.
As attacks on small and midsize businesses continue to increase, these companies need a cost-efficient, scalable unified threat management solution.
29%
of businesses invest less than $1,000 a year on IT security
52%
of SMBs distribute IT security responsibility across other roles
WHAT IS YOUR BUDGET FOR IT SECURITY?
CONCERNS REMAIN AT THE FOREFRONT
56% of respondents confirm that recent security breaches affect the way their business strategizes their security roadmap moving forward. Sadly, due to budget and personnel constraints, businesses have limited resources to research and understand new threats targeting their business. This is compounded by the fact that 32% identify employees who do not follow IT security guidelines or policies, as a significant impediment to IT security for those policies that are currently in place.
DO THE RECENT SECURITY BREACHES AFFECT THE WAY YOU THINK OF YOUR SECURITY ROADMAP MOVING FORWARD?
Despite these limitations, businesses understand the importance of firewall/network security, protection against viruses and malware, and identity access management and rank these as their top three features when considering an IT security solution.
EXPANDING WORKFORCE
The business landscape is shifting. With an increase in connectivity and technology, businesses are hiring the best employees for their company, even if this means the employee is in a different city, state, or country. Of those surveyed, 40% of SMBs now have at least 5 employee locations, with 11% identifying more than 25 employee-based locations.
40%
of SMBs now have at least 5 employee locations
24%
of respondents have or plan to implement an SD-WAN solution into their network infrastructure
HOW MANY PHYSICAL LOCATIONS DOES YOUR BUSINESS OPERATE ACROSS (INCLUDING REMOTE ACCESS WORKERS)?
Businesses with remote workers and branch offices need to consider IT security in a more complex capacity than a single-location infrastructure. Software-defined WAN solutions help organizations optimize their internet connections and easily create one global office network: across service providers, physical locations, and networks. At least 24% of those surveyed have or plan to implement an SD-WAN solution into their network infrastructure with the goal of reducing risks to the network and managing branch offices.
HAVE YOU IMPLEMENTED SD-WAN SOLUTIONS IN YOUR ORGANIZATION?
CLOUD-BASED IT INFRASTRUCTURE
Most SMBs (74%) have at least part of their IT infrastructure deployed on the cloud. Transitioning to a cloud-based IT infrastructure allows SMBs to improve their processes, storage, and networking fabric resources. The scalability of the cloud allows SMBs with limited resources to pay-as-they-go and transform their infrastructure as their business needs change.
However, security on the public cloud remains a vulnerability for SMBs. 63% of survey respondents state their organization does not deploy a firewall on the public cloud, leaving these businesses open for cyber attack.
DO YOU HAVE AT LEAST PART OF YOUR IT INFRASTRUCTURE DEPLOYED IN THE CLOUD? (PUBLIC OR PRIVATE)
LOOKING AHEAD
As technologies change, SMBs must also change their dedication to network security and where it stands as a business priority. Small and midsize businesses will continue to be a target for hackers because of their limited resources.
As employee-based remote offices and branch offices continue to expand, SD-WAN deployment will be critical in establishing secure connections between employee locations separated by distance, offering network-wide control and visibility for incoming threats or attacks.
Firewall as a Service (FWaaS), similar to other cloud-based services being used today, will deliver firewall and other network security capabilities as a scalable unified threat management solution for cloud-based IT infrastructures. Building a security strategy within an SMBs roadmap to include cloud-based IT infrastructure implementation will be crucial as more companies transition away from traditional on-premises infrastructure.
ABOUT UNTANGLE
Untangle is an innovator in cybersecurity for the below-enterprise market, safeguarding people’s digital lives at home, work and on-the-go. Untangle’s integrated suite of software and appliances provides enterprise-grade capabilities and consumer-oriented simplicity, bringing a new generation of smart security to homes and small-to-mid-sized businesses. Untangle’s award-winning network security solutions are trusted by over 400,000 customers, protecting nearly 5 million people, their computers and networks around the world.
UNTANGLE NG FIREWALL FOR SMBS
Untangle provides simple and affordable network security specifically for SMB. Our flagship product, NG Firewall, provides unified threat management capabilities integrated with robust policy management tools that enable IT administrators to monitor, manage and control their networks while also providing protection from evolving threats. Known for simplifying network security, NG Firewall delivers enterprise-grade cybersecurity features in a package that is easy to purchase, configure, deploy and maintain. Untangle NG Firewall helps SMBs by providing:
UNTANGLE SD-WAN ROUTER FOR SMBS
As your business evolves, so does the complexity of your network infrastructure.
Advanced business applications such as video conferencing, VoIP, cloud-based services, and storage increase bandwidth demands on Internet infrastructure. These Internet demands and the connectivity needs of new branch offices means your network and your network security must adapt to bandwidth usage, the cloud, and new devices, all while prioritizing business-critical applications.
