AT&T is introducing a managed firewall service for business customers undertaking private 5G network deployments. The offering is the first in what the carrier said will be a portfolio of 5G security offerings.
The managed firewall offering is designed to provide enhanced threat visibility, advanced attack prevention at the application layer and security policy enforcement for 5G-enabled IoT, “OT” and IT deployments.
Cyberattack threats continue to grow on a global basis. According to a Pearson Institute/Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll, 9 in 10 Americans are at least somewhat concerned about hacking that involves their personal information, financial institutions, government agencies or certain utilities. Microsoft warned earlier this week that a growing number of cyberattacks are targeting U.S. companies.
According to a report titled AT&T Cybersecurity Insights: 5G and Journey to the Edge, just 9% of organizations have high confidence that their security posture is prepared for the rollout of 5G. Cyberattacks increasingly are targeting IoT devices as those devices become more embedded in company communications infrastructures.
The new AT&T managed firewall solution tries to address this by bringing together “cybersecurity expertise from trusted advisors and robust security defenses in the application layer.”
According to AT&T, native integration of next-generation firewall technology into the 5G network supports new capabilities that will enable Zero Trust architectures.
In a press release yesterday, AT&T references its Wireless Broadband with AT&T Secure Web Gateway and AT&T Secure Remote Access offerings which, according to the company, provide highly secure connections to cloud-based business-critical applications.
“These expanded security capabilities provide a highly secure network environment for businesses to access the data and applications they need to bring 5G use cases to market,” AT&T said in the press release.
“For organizations to fully utilize the power of 5G for innovation across their edge infrastructure, they need protection from security risks and vulnerabilities,” said Rupesh Chokshi, vice president for AT&T Cybersecurity, in a prepared statement.
“Our security-first approach combines a highly functional layer of security with expertise in managed services and edge computing to help businesses deliver revolutionary outcomes.”
Joan Engebretson contributed to this report.
