Fortinet – the pioneer and leading provider of unified threat management (UTM) solutions – introduced the FortiGate-60B and the FortiWifi-60B, two high-performance, full-featured multi-threat security appliances designed for enterprise branch offices, retail outlets and small businesses.

Delivering comprehensive enterprise-class protection for wired and wireless networked environments, the new FortiGate-60B and the FortiWifi-60B appliances enable enterprises to cost-effectively extend robust security down to even the smallest sites in their organizations.

The new FortiWifi-60B will be demonstrated at Gitex Technology Week 2007.

“Enterprise branch offices and retail outlets are targets for cyber attacks just as headquarters and large sites are, but often lack the same security defenses to protect against an array of threats, especially those targeted specifically at Web-based applications and VoIP vulnerabilities,” said Bashar Bashaireh, Middle East regional manager, Fortinet.

“In the Middle East this is particularly true since most large enterprises have to deal with remote offices in several different countries, exposing them to more Internet threats. Additionally, the adoption of third generation (3G) wireless networks in enterprise branch office and retail environments creates additional security risks. With cyber criminals eager to leverage every opportunity or entry for attack, many often attempt to capitalise on the weaknesses of small branch sites as a vehicle for attacking enterprise resources.”

In particular, retail sites are at risk as a result of the increased movement from “closed” dial-up and frame relay network access methods to “open” broadband Internet access and wireless networks.

Driving security from a “should have” to a “must have” are regulations mandating retail businesses and service providers that store, process or transmit cardholder data to comply with a set of network security requirements – as defined by the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard – or face significant fines.

The new FortiGate-60B and FortiWifi-60B bring new power and flexibility to enterprise branch offices and retail outlets as their needs for protection and compliance continue to grow.

These new security appliances incorporate a purpose-built FortiASIC specifically designed for high-performance multi-function security. In addition to increased flexibility and performance, both appliances feature a front-accessible PC card slot that supports 3G wireless PC cards from multiple mobile carriers, ensuring flexibility for rapid deployment.

The FortiGate-60B and FortiWifi-60B also include dual WAN interfaces, an integrated analog modem, six internal interfaces, and one DMZ interface to allow network administrators to definitively segment a trusted area for internal users and an untrusted area for public users – an option that was until now limited to larger environments.

The FortiWifi-60B provides the same features as the FortiGate-60B, but is designed specifically to address the secure wireless connectivity requirements of enterprise branch offices, retail locations and small businesses. This solution also has built-in 802.11 a/b/g wireless support.

Much like Fortinet’s high-end FortiGate systems for the large enterprises, carriers and MSSPs, the FortiGate-60B and FortiWifi-60B deliver real-time network protection through the integration of essential security applications and services – including firewall, antivirus, virtual private network (VPN), intrusion prevention (IPS), anti-spam, Web content filtering and traffic shaping – that can be deployed individually, or combined as a UTM solution. 

All FortiGate systems are kept up to date automatically by Fortinet's FortiGuard subscription services, which provide continuous updates to help protect against the latest viruses, worms, Trojans, and other threats.